


come here, little puppy.

by rvmmm21



Category: Red Velvet (K-pop Band)
Genre: F/F, Fluff and Angst, Fluffy Ending, Hybrid AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-11
Updated: 2020-06-14
Packaged: 2021-03-04 03:48:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 28,244
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24667135
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rvmmm21/pseuds/rvmmm21
Summary: the screams of her prey gave the vampiress no pause as she drank from them. she was stone-cold, completely heartless... except when it came to the one particular little dog who had innocently bumbled into one of her death traps.[A wenrene fic - hybrid!seungwan x vampire!joohyun]
Relationships: Bae Joohyun | Irene/Son Seungwan | Wendy, WenRene
Comments: 4
Kudos: 59





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> welcome to my first hybrid fic ever, one of my first kpop fics ever, too. i'm very inexperienced, so please do forgive any grammatical/spelling/english errors in general. i also apologise for the potential cringe. since this is my first, i really hope to get better as i progress! 
> 
> now the formalities are out the way, i hope you somewhat enjoy. :)

To answer a few questions you guys may have, if you have any more i'll add em onto here:

1\. how old is wannie?

i'm not too sure about hybrid ages and the way that works, but she's still in puppyhood, a relatively young girl. in relation to human age she's probably at the maturity level of a 5/6 year old? 

*quick note: seungwan may speak in simple sentences for a child of that age, but that's because she doesn't speak alot. she doesn't really need it. joohyun and her have a very special bond outside of conventional speech, so it doesn't really matter.*

2\. how big/small is she? 

hybrid seungwannie in this story is only slightly smaller than the real seungwan. in reality, seungwan is the shortest in red velvet, even shorter than irene, so yeah.

3\. how is joohyun able to pick seungwan up like a child?

it's easy for her, reallly. because seungwan is slightly smaller than her, but mainly because joohyun's a vampire. and vampire joohyun has no concept of weakness. not gonna lie, i kinda built the physical traits of her character on a mix of traditional vampires and twilight vampires (that's where the super strength comes from).

4\. what hybrid is she?

wan is a jindo puppy!


	2. lonely.

_ thwack! _   
  


Razor- sharp fangs were at the ready as the trap went off. A shrill yelp filled the cool air and sent a flock of birds scattering into the midnight sky. Setting up a trap was very un-vampire like, but she never cared for the chase. She was impatient; wanting to sink her fangs into her prey as soon as possible. It had been a while, _too long_ in fact, since the vampiress had had a fresh meal of any sort. The modern day and age often left her with little choice but to resort to prepacked blood bags from local vending machines. They were as bland as they were pricey, and Bae Joohyun had found herself increasingly unwilling to spend that much money on stale tasting pigs’ blood.   
  


Freshly caught meals were a rare luxury, and Joohyun smirked as she readied herself for the first kill of the night.   
  


Rounding the tree from where she’d been waiting, she gracefully made her way over to the tiny shifting bundle shrouded in the shadows. Her enhanced vision told her something was amiss about this meal; mainly the fact that it was not in the shape of her usual deer or other small animal, but very, _very_ human.   
  


Well, _kind of_ human.   
  


Joohyun was processing newer information with each step she took. She would’ve automatically passed the hectic bundle under the thick, roped net as a human. A human girl, no less. That was until she noted the pair of soft, pointy ears nestled between thick locks of layered golden-brown curls and the fluffy tail behind her.    
  


_ Ah, a hybrid,  _ she thought, stepping into the moonlight and making her presence known to the oblivious little heap thrashing about at her feet.   
  


She stood there, unmoving, and fighting every urge to just pick the little thing up and carry it home right then.   
  


The captured girl froze in her tracks when she felt a sudden cold gush over her, making her shiver and prick her sensitive ears towards the direction of the stillness.   
  


_ How cute. _   
  


Yes, she wouldn’t lie. Joohyun had fully intended on devouring anything and everything the night (and net) brought her. The squeals and struggles of her usual kills gave her no pause as she drained them dry and carelessly disposed of their carcasses. However, this. This was different. She surprised herself with how instantly infatuated she was by this adorable little hybrid. The way her ears were pressed flat against her head, weighed down by the heavy rope. The way her tail quivered ever so slightly, in fear no doubt, and those big, soft brown eyes with the unknowing ability to pierce right through her cold, dead soul. If she had a heart, it would’ve been fluttering and doing back flips by now, she was sure of it.   
  


The vampire was so consumed by her captive that she forgot to be angry that she’d been swindled out of tonight’s meal.   
  


The girl, on the other hand, was completely terrified as she beheld this elegant vampiric beauty with sleek raven hair casting a looming shadow over her trapped form. Her skin was flawless, un-kissed by anything other than the moon and it seemed to shimmer ethereally under the light of the stars. Her heart was going a million miles a minute, audibly thumping against her rib-cage as her canine senses picked up on a peculiar warmth to this woman despite her deathly steely exterior. The woman began circling her, and she followed the movement with wide, shaky eyes.   
  


Her attention snapped to the figure now crouching down beside her.   
  


“Well look what we have here,” she sneered, making a show of licking her blood-red lips as the girl squeaked in fear, “A lonely puppy, all for me to snatch up.”   
  


Joohyun had decided not to eat her, but that didn’t mean she wouldn’t toy with her a little.   
  


The terrified girl gave a small whimper and tried to scoot back as far away from the vampire as she could. But the net was small, and she’d pulled it taut in no time, exhausting all her options of escape.   
  


The woman chuckled darkly and closed the distance between them once again.  She didn’t miss how hard her little captive was panting, chest erratically rising and falling with every panicked breath.    
  


“Nowhere to run, I’m afraid,” Joohyun paused when she caught sight of the girl’s neck; the paleness enhancing the way her pulse point on her jaw throbbed madly, and so deliciously bare.   
  


_ My my, is she really? If she is… then this is too good to be true. This is Christmas... _   
  


“Oh dear, little puppy,” she smirked, feigning concern to which she already had the answer to, “where’s your collar? Do you not have an owner?”   
  


Her smirk widened as her suspicions were confirmed when the girl meekly shook her head, ears flopping over and drooping sadly.   
  


_ Poor thing, a stray. How could such an endearing creature possibly be a stray? _   
  


Anger bubbled up inside her thinking about who could’ve done this. It was obvious that this was a pedigree, and a fine specimen, at that. Definitely the type to be bred and bred from the finest bloodlines, only purpose in life to serve in show business or to be bought by filthy rich families who hadn’t the time nor a clue on how to properly raise a hybrid. It made her sick to her stomach. But she hastily brushed her emotions and opinions aside, focusing on the more important issue at hand.   
  


“What’s your name, little one?”   
  


“S-Seung-w-wan…” the girl barely even managed to stammer.   
  


It was settled then. Seungwan needn’t worry, for she had found herself, willingly or unwillingly, a new home. Never had the vampiress made up her mind as fast as she did tonight, wanting nothing more than to keep this shivering little puppy warm and safe at all costs. It was so perfect, she almost forgot she’d come out tonight to feast, and her fangs had long since retracted. She’d been contemplating getting a pet ever since moving into her new place. Despite appearing aloof and reticent to the public eye, Joohyun had to admit that it did get more than a little lonely having to live with oneself day to day with nothing but your own lifeless soul for company. She desired companionship, and she was just waiting for the right time to acquire it.   
  


But it seemed like fate beat her to it, in a night of unadulterated blood-lust.   
  


“Well then, Wannie, it’s time to go home,” she said nonchalantly, pushing herself from her position and straightening up in preparation to cut the net.   
  


She looked down at the shivering girl at her feet, curled up in a tight ball and burying her face in her fluffy jumper. The vampiress inwardly kicked herself for knowing she’d just as good as given the poor thing a heart attack.   
  


_Okay, façade’s up you idiot. Time to play nice._   
  


Having had basic knowledge of dogs and the responsibilities that came with them from the time she was a young vampiress and her family had gifted her a Dachshund pup for her 100th birthday, Joohyun bent down once again to calm Seungwan down, hoping hybrids were the same. She'd adored Mr. Wiggles, but learning to come to terms with the loss of a pet was a grievous path known to animal lovers of all species, human or vampire. She had been far too upset for the next thousand years or so to even consider getting another pet, for fear of forgetting him and feeling as though he was easily replaceable. It wasn't just a pit of despair, though. Pets were lovely; their warmth was like none other. You’d often find yourself questioning what on earth you had done, never quite sure how you’d come to deserve such boundless, unconditional love.   
  
  


Joohyun couldn't have felt more undeserving.   
  


Ignoring the scared flinch she received for reaching into the net, she carefully extended a limp hand, as Seungwan strained her neck forwards to take cautious little sniffs at it and at the air around her, trying to detect any sort of potential threat. Of which she found none. Joohyun then began oh so gently scratching soothing circles on the puppy’s head behind her small floppy ears. Seungwan immediately let out a small, heart-breaking whimper as she tensed at the sudden contact, however, visibly relaxed when she realised the fingers weren’t hurting her, after which she instinctively sighed into the affectionate touch.   
  


Joohyun let out a shaky breath of relief when it worked.   
  


“There, there,” she cooed, taking care not to scratch too hard as she carefully observed Seungwan’s expressions, “Sorry for scaring you, little one. But I’m not going to hurt you, I promise.”   
  


Seungwan wasn’t sure how much of that she could actually trust, but in her current state of affairs she had little else to go by but the words of this bizarrely tender vampiress.   
  


And she seemed to be keeping to it… for now, at least.   
  


Seungwan just about rolled over in submission when Joohyun took one of her warm little ears and started rolling it softly between her fingers. Shivers ran down her body and her tail began unconsciously swishing back and forth. She’d never been touched like this before, and the poor thing shocked herself with how her body naturally responded to the simple caresses. She was so depraved of any physical touch, affection aside, that the little that Joohyun was doing now overwhelmed her enough to willingly go along with it; to be taken in and taken care of, despite having her qualms about stranger danger.   
  


“I’m going to take care of you, but you have to be a good girl and come home with me,” the vampiress couldn’t stop an escaping giggle at the sight of the girl practically drooling as she continued to roll her soft, velvety ear; eyelids heavy and pink little tongue lolled out at the corner of her mouth.   
  


“Okay, puppy?” she inquired, taking her hand from out of the net.   
  


The little dog whined at the sudden loss of contact, but unexpectedly nodded up at her with sad, glazed brown orbs.   
  


_ We’re not even home yet. Wannie-ah, are you trying to kill me? _   
  


It was only when Joohyun was sure the girl had calmed down significantly to the point where she knew Seungwan wouldn’t try to run, did she give the net a quick slice with the small knife she kept handy at all times. She hurled the weight off and Seungwan’s ears sprung up, one sticking straight up and one happily folding over as she innocently glanced around, apparently not yet realising she was free. It was murderously heart-wrenching to behold; Joohyun had to thank her lucky stars she didn’t have one. She made quick work of crafting a makeshift noose and lead out of the remnants of the trap.   
  


Holding the noose up in front of her with trembling hands, Joohyun held her breath, warily eyeing the unmoving girl as she carefully inched her way closer, utterly terrified that she’d make the one unfavourable movement that would cause Seungwan to bolt.   
  


But it never happened. The puppy stayed put, head cocked and eyes on her the entire time.   
  


“Okay Wannie, don’t be scared, I’m just going to put this around your neck. It’s only for now, I promise. It won’t be long.”   
  


The vampiress was more than prepared. She was prepared to have to chase the girl down, subconsciously readying herself for when she’d make a run for it. A small part of her also prepared to give in, to accept the fact that she’d lost her little pet and resign herself to loneliness once more until she found someone or something that tugged at her as deep and effectively as Seungwan had tonight.   
  


What she _wasn’t_ prepared for, was abruptly being nose to nose with the girl in less time it took to blink, feeling her hands that were still clutching the noose now lightly grazing the tips of her shoulders. Joohyun had to forcefully blink the disbelief away before settling her gaze back on the floppy-eared girl now standing inches away from her, breath tickling her chin. A seismic shock wave threatening to wipe the earth would’ve flustered her less, as her entire being froze in this completely unprecedented display of dangerously blind trust only a puppy could boast.   
  


So she just about keeled over and perished, as the terms and conditions of being immortal would allow, when the irreproachable honey-toned words left Seungwan’s mouth in the tiniest, almost punishingly lovable question.   
  


“Take Wannie home now?”


	3. happy.

It was a sight, really, the cold-hearted, level-headed vampiress igloo-ed in a pile of ‘How-To’ guides: hybrid edition.  
  


Having Seungwan arrive in such a whirlwind of spontaneity, Joohyun found herself drowning in the copious amounts of research she’d done over the past couple weeks. Any and _every_ book on the planet pertaining to hybrids and how to raise one not-so-magically found its way dog-eared and scattered all over her once pristine living room floor. The minimalistic mansion had always been her pride and joy, her baby, even. But now, Joohyun couldn’t have cared less. She had new baby, far more comforting and heart-warming than some fleeting, pointless concept. Plus, she’d knowingly taken on this responsibility so she intended to fulfill her duties to the best of her ability.  
  


She had pretty much isolated herself from the outside world, her weekly supermarket ventures to ensure her enormous fridge was well stocked with nothing short of highest quality food for Seungwan. She barely remembered when she had or hadn’t eaten, her own mealtimes becoming a blur of caffeine and prepacked blood bags at this point.  
  


But she didn’t care.  
  


Nothing less for her precious little Wannie.  
  


Her precious little Wannie whose fluffy tail was now dully thwacking the vampiress in the arm as they sat back to back, brown eyes glued to the classic cartoons Joohyun had turned on to keep the little monster distracted while she studied.  
  


Joohyun smiled as she moved her hand to gently hold the tail down, still feeling it swish contentedly under the light restriction of her palm. She craned her neck to check on the little puppy but did a double take, immediately shifting from her seated position on the floor so she was facing Seungwan’s back.  
  


“Wannie-ah,” she huffed, hooking her palms under the girl’s armpits to scoot her inches backwards, “not so close to the TV, we need your eyes to be healthy, okay?”  
  


Seungwan wriggled a bit at the fingers under her arms but never took her eyes off the small brown mouse who seemed to constantly outsmart the poor blue cat.  
  


After plopping her down at a satisfying distance, Joohyun re-positioned her glasses atop her nose and resumed reading. She briefly skimmed across suggestions on how to properly pet your hybrid when they were relaxed or stressed, gracefully unaware of how her slender fingers trivially mimicked the illustrations and instructions she read on the printed pages.   
  


Gosh, it was surprising, really, the things you can learn in two weeks.  
  


Seungwan was taken to the vet as soon as they’d give her an appointment, just to check everything was in working order. Which, thankfully it was. Joohyun inwardly crumbled when she felt a face buried as far as it would go into her chest and broken cries filling the examination room as she held her puppy’s arm out steady so the vet could take a blood sample. It felt like such a betrayal when the girl had put her entire life in her hands, that hearing those fearful little whimpers made her feel like she was shattering her trust right before Seungwan’s red, tear-stained eyes. It was over in a moment, though, and Joohyun gently guided her Wannie’s snivelling face off her damp cashmere jumper to run her thumbs over her pink cheeks. Seungwan, all tuckered out from the terrifying ordeal of her first vet check-up, was curled up in the vampiress’ lap as they waited in reception for the green light and test results.   
  


Joohyun glanced down at the velvet ear twitching between her fingers as she gingerly rubbed comforting circles over the soft fur. She watched the puppy’s erratic breathing eventually even and her stiffened tail dangle limply against the chair, knowing she had slipped into a well-earned slumber.  
  


Seungwan passed with flying colours, all her bloodwork coming back with positive signs, she was a rambunctious, healthy little pup. And she was still on the young side, quite a way off puberty, something which Joohyun was very much _not_ looking forward to. Still, they’d cross that dreadfully hormonal bridge when they got to it.  
  


Joohyun walked out the clinic, Seungwan snoring blissfully in her arms.  
  


The days following was a crash course of intense learning for both parties; mostly concerning things or actions the other did or didn’t like. For example, there was now a steady stock of butter in the fridge; not just because Seungwan loved butter, but more because she hated taking her vitamins. After being advised that it was okay for her to have small amounts of butter, the pesky daily vitamin was carefully wrapped in the treat and Seungwan wouldn’t think twice about gulping it down, leaving Joohyun beyond relieved and smirking at how easy it was to outsmart her little puppy.  
  


But just as much as there was give, there was also take. And on more than one occasion, Joohyun had returned from her supermarket run to be greeted by what appeared to be world war three having taken place in the short span of her absence. The already messy living room flipped further upside down, pillows strewn across the vast expanse, broken vases, various items completely out of place…  
  


And not a shameful puppy in sight.  
  


_ Aigo, you clingy little troublemaker, you. _  
  


She’d put the groceries away with an exaggerated sigh, letting her half-hearted disappointment reverberate around the house, knowing full well those sensitive, guilty, floppy ears would perk up instantly at the sound. More often than not, she’d turn around to the wrenching sight of Seungwan, tail between her legs, gazing up with her with big, watery eyes. The very definition of remorse. The puppy was innocence personified, which made keeping that stern front intact all the more difficult to do. It would only usually last a few minutes, before Joohyun broke and rushed to embrace her sorry little pup, whispering words of reassurance into her hair as she watched the tail slowly unfold and sway lazily as she smoothed sad, deflated ears back to life.  
  


And it wouldn’t stop there.  
  


Joohyun wouldn’t let up until she was certain the girl was fully relaxed, often finding herself holding the puppy on the kitchen floor as she massaged that sweet spot at the base of Seungwan’s ears she’d accidentally discovered one lazy afternoon on the sofa. The vampiress adored it when that happened, feeling like she had magical powers beyond this earth, as she was able to reduce her boisterous ball of energy into a docile, quivering puddle with just her skillful finger dexterity.  
  


_ Okay, mummy doesn’t like when I make the house pretty,  _ Seungwan made the same mental note she seemed to forget time and time again.  
  


The ear trick worked like a charm every time, it was almost scary. It was Seungwan’s ultimate weakness and she couldn’t shy away from it no matter how much she wanted to. And you can bet your biggest buck that as soon as Joohyun discovered its plethora of uses, she abused it to the maximum. Restlessness, naughtiness, stress or when Seungwan’s puppy liveliness got just a little too much to handle; all far too easily dealt with.  
  


And they both knew it too.  
  


Seungwan had learnt the infamous ‘ear-trick’ look in no time. She usually loved it, willingly laying her head down in Joohyun’s lap when she was preoccupied with something to remind her that she still existed, even begging for it on the rare occasion Joohyun didn’t pick up on what she wanted. But sometimes she just wanted to play a little bit more before bedtime. It was hard having all this energy and not spending it wrecking the house, didn’t Joohyun know that? So when she heard the dreaded ‘bedtime’ and the footsteps padding in her direction, she knew what was coming. She had to act fast, dashing up for the toy room in the hopes of locking herself in there before the vampiress caught on.  
  


Unfortunately, unbeknownst to her, when you play the exact same trick several hundred times in a row, it isn’t that hard to catch on.  
  


She barely had a grasp on the door handle before a strong arm snaked its way round her waist and gently pulled her backwards into inescapable arms.  
  


“Ah, ah, ah,” she tutted, “Oh no you don’t.”  
  


_ I’m much faster than you, don’t you know that, silly puppy. _  
  


Seungwan wriggled and writhed all the way to the bedroom where she was now cradled in Joohyun’s arms, the latter of which exasperatedly trying to get the unwilling girl ready for bed.  
  


“Wannie-ah, behave,” she instructed, readjusting her grip on her after getting her changed. One slip and Seungwan would be out that door and back into the play room faster than you could say ‘biscuits’.  
  


“Time for bed, it’s already 10 o’clock.”  
  


But Seungwan wasn’t listening. She wasn’t tired! Just a while more, come on! Her wriggles got more and more insistent, and Joohyun sure as hell wasn’t about to tighten her grip any more than she had already.  
  


_ Don’t make me do it, puppy. _  
  


“Mumm! Wannie wanna play just five more minutes!” she whined in between struggles.  
  


Too bad, this matter was not up for negotiation. Big brown eyes widened when she felt the fingers at the base of her furiously flicking ears, trying unsuccessfully to escape the overwhelming sensation.  
  


_ I warned you, Wannie. _  
  


Seungwan opened her mouth to protest, but it was too late, Joohyun’s fingers had already begun working their magic and her struggles weakened. By the end of it, her neck was slumped back, head heavy against Joohyun’s collarbone as she looked up with glazed eyes at the smiling woman who had unfairly drained her of all her energy.  
  


“Good girl,” Joohyun cooed, picking her up like a rag-doll and setting her down on the bed. She tucked her in, stroking her head as she drifted off in no time.  
  


Rolling her eyes and chuckling, Joohyun straightened up to clean up downstairs so she could curl up with her pet as soon as possible.  
  


…  
  


Seungwan’s mattress remained untouched to this day when Joohyun kicked it aside after realising Wannie had silently suffered through her first night sleeping alone. Bowl of roasted chicken and mushy peas in hand, she crooned for her pup, all but dropping the bowl as soon as she opened the door to the guest room when she’d left her to sleep. Rushing over to cup the girl’s face in her palms, she kicked herself when she noticed the dampness soaking through the pillow and mattress.  
  


“No don’t cry Wannie-ah,” she consoled the sobbing girl, “Poor thing, you sleep with me now, okay?”  
  


Droopy ears pricked up at the words and she vigorously nodded, earning her a soft coo and getting her picked up and placed in Joohyun’s lap as the vampiress held the spoon to her lips, signalling it was time for breakfast. Chicken and peas, Wannie’s favourite. Joohyun doted at the sight of her messy eater, more food on her face than in her mouth, ears flicking in delight as she chewed.  
  


Joohyun revelled in everything she learnt about Seungwan, but her favourite by far were the times she could just unwind after a long hard day, curled up on the sofa with a glass of wine, engrossed in a laughable movie series which horribly depicted vampires and werewolves with Seungwan right there beside her, either snacking or snoring away. Joohyun could be doing anything, holding a glass of wine, eating ramyun, or even simply reading a book; one hand would always be on her precious little Wannie. Be that carding her fingers through the girls locks of golden-brown, absentmindedly fiddling with the fluffy tail, a little to Seungwan’s annoyance, or scratching lazy circles underneath her fleecy jumper as she was now.  
  


She turned her attention from the screen to the dreaming puppy sprawled out next to her, chuckling softly at the way the little leg twitched when she hit a particularly sensitive spot on her tummy.  
  


As the night and the movie drew to a close, Joohyun yawned widely, carefully placing the glass down on the coffee table so as to not to disrupt the steady breathing. Switching off the TV, she bent down to scoop Seungwan up in the swiftest of motions, already used to having to carry her to the bedroom the countless times she’d fallen asleep during movie nights.  
  


“Come on puppy,” she whispered, gently kissing her on the forehead, “Time for bed.”  
  


She got Seungwan changed into her comfy pyjamas before washing up for the night.  
  


Bedtime was also one of her favourites. It meant she got to spoon her, feeling the warm little body pressed into hers was the closest thing to owning a sentient, beating heart as the vampiress could ever hope for.  
  


Hell, it was even better.  
  


_ This is what love is,  _ she thought fondly.  
  


Knowing the girl was in far too deep a sleep to be roused by anything other than a nuclear bomb going off in their lawn, Joohyun couldn’t help lightly blowing on the back of her head. She grinned as soft, coffee-coloured ears flicked in response in spite of their oblivious owner, the twitching of her fluffy tail now slightly tickling the vampiress’ legs under the thick duvet.  
  


It was almost insane how fast she’d fallen for this tiny ball of excitement and adoration, but she was elated to have finally found a companion unmatched. Domesticity had walked in on Joohyun, unprepared, but she had welcomed it with open arms. She’d never admit it, but she enjoyed unravelling; letting her icy façade melt away every once in a while, and what better time to do that than in the company of her newfound best friend and soul mate?  
  


“G’night Wannie-ah,” Joohyun murmured into the puppy’s shoulder, feeling the weight of sleep overtaking her too.  
  


Heavy eyes cracked open as she felt a shift in her arms.  
  


“…nngh… nightmummy…”


	4. midnight.

If someone had told Bae Joohyun that in about two weeks’ time, she’d be playing ‘mummy’ to a bouncy, idiotically adorable little hybrid puppy, they’d be dead, no doubt. Hell, they wouldn’t have been breathing two seconds after the last word left their mouth. Joohyun would’ve immediately put them out of their stupidity; drained them, of their stupidity, more precisely. There was no way in hell the icy vampiress would have even thought twice about accepting a notion that absurd. She was to be feared! Revered! Men cowered and collapsed on the ground she so gracefully glided along. She could have any victim on their knees, begging for their expendable, pathetic lives as she sunk her fangs into their throats, her talons digging into the warm, human flesh, showing not the slightest ounce of mercy. There wasn’t a power ferocious enough known to mankind that would ever get a fearsome vampiress like her to-  
  


“…nnghmummy…”  
  


Joohyun’s eyes shot open instantly at the tiny, muffled grunt, softening once they settled on the pair of coffee-coloured ears sticking out of the duvet.  
  


The bundle in her arms shifted slightly, entirely buried in the combined warmth of the duvet and the vampiress’ marginal body heat. A tiny leg twitched, and Joohyun felt a sleepy smile tug at the corners of her lips.  
  


Her puppy was dreaming.  
  


_What are you dreaming of, Wannie-ah? Have you finally caught your tail?_  
  


She chuckled, remembering the few times she’d had to pry Seungwan’s tail out of her _own_ two hands, when the girl had somehow managed to catch the fluffy, illusive thing but didn’t seem to know how to let go. It would almost always end with Joohyun warning her not to chew on it then swiftly channelling the hyperactivity someplace else, usually with the help of some sort of a distraction; belly tickles, treats and cartoons being the three reigning champions.  
  


An arm lifted to allow the bundle room to turn over so it was now facing her, ears flopping limply over one another. She let out the softest coo as a face nuzzled into her chest, exhaling steadily as she leaned in to pepper feather-light kisses all over the warm little ears, feeling them start to flick gently under her breath.  
  


God, she could stay like this forever.  
  


Literally, she needed nothing else… she was a vampire.  
  


But the bundle in her arms very much wasn’t, and Joohyun’s eyes widened when she glanced at the time.  
  


_Oh puppy, it’s almost time for breakfast._  
  


The covers were peeled off as gently as vampirically possible, revealing the sweetest sleeping face, now scrunching up as an unwelcoming draft blew over. She waited a second before gently running a thumb over a pink cheek, flushed from having been wrapped in the comfort of her mummy’s arms and the duck feathered duvet. Perfectly rounded nails, now clipped as short as possible, found their way to the tangled mess atop the head and began smoothing the kinks of sleep from the locks of golden-brown, rousing Seungwan into the land of the living.  
  


“Ah, ah,” Joohyun chided lovingly as a grumpy puppy tried to pull the covers back over her head, “time for breakfast, Wannie. Let’s get ready. Today’s a big day.”  
  


It was all too easy to lift the little grouch, much too drowsy to kick up a fuss, off the bed and into the bathroom where she ran a lukewarm bath and got the favourite bath toys out to play. Seungwan’s eyes lit up when she saw Mr. Squeaky; the yellow, rubber duck, who was bobbing along in the sea of suds. She barely allowed Joohyun to undress her before she was worming her way out of her grasp and climbing in to splash around with him. The vampiress flinched and held two arms defensively over her face as the water level in the bath depleted, the bathroom floor simultaneously becoming a slippery, soapy mess.  
  


“Alright, calm down, calm down, let me scrub you before you empty this bathtub,” she huffed as she lathered up the washcloth with a few pumps of body wash and ran it all over the distracted girl. Seungwan squirmed and giggled whenever Joohyun held her arm up so she could clean her, earning her an amused laugh each time.  
  


Getting the tedious bath time out the way was a huge weight lifted, and Seungwan was a fast learner with regards to the remaining bathroom chores, already being able to brush her own teeth after watching her mummy do it a couple times. So they could now do it together, much to Joohyun’s relief. After which, Joohyun would brush her thick hair and gently blow dry it, making sure it was thoroughly dried so she wouldn’t catch a chill.  
  


A pair of freshly cleaned, floppy ears sprung up before folding over as the neck of a light blue jumper was pulled over their owner’s head. She had the matching blue joggers on and plush white socks tugged onto her feet so they’d stay warm in the cruelly unforgiving bout of winter. She got a quick peck on the nose before being picked up and carried out the bedroom.  
  


Joohyun got to preparing breakfast as soon as she settled the ball of comfort onto the floor of the living room and reached for the pristine clad-wrapped remote to switch Seungwan’s favourite cartoon on.  
  


The little monster had recently begun losing her first milk teeth so Joohyun had to be extra careful to nibble-proof anything and everything even remotely harmful the pup could get her paws on. Funny how you can buy chew toys and raw-hide of every description, but still find the rubbery buttons on the remote nicely littered around the coffee table… multiple times. Joohyun had scoured the mansion that day, taking notes and assessing every item for its ‘nibble factor’, then proceeding to move those highest on the scale to the topmost shelves so a certain unruly, teething puppy wouldn’t be able to reach them anytime soon.  
  


“Wannie-ah,” she called over her shoulder, gingerly pressing a tester spoon of food to her lips to check that it’d cooled down enough, “come here, breakfast time!”  
  


“Coming mummy!” the tiny voice was followed by audibly clumsy shuffling and a small thud before a face peeked round into the kitchen.  
  


Joohyun couldn’t help but smile as she purposely wafted the mouth-watering scent of freshly cooked chicken porridge in Seungwan’s direction, watching it helplessly entice the puppy into the kitchen one curious little sniff at a time. With a quick boost, she was sat at the table, hungry brown eyes boring into the steamy, full bowl in front of her.  
  


“Very good girl, Wannie, chew slowly yah,” Joohyun cooed encouragingly as she fed her spoon after spoon of the thick, flavourful mush and pausing between spoonful’s to lightly scratch the delightfully flicking ears.  
  


Giggles and squeals echoed youth into the house and the vampiress chuckled to herself as she did the dishes.  
  


“Alright, enough TV,” Joohyun quipped, picking up the remote and switching it off, earning a small pout from the girl far too invested in what the big, strong dog was going to do to the blue cat after catching it unintentionally hurting his son.  
  


Joohyun ran her hands over her long, black skirt and fiddled with the neckline of her jet-black jumper before bunching luscious raven tresses into a sleek low ponytail. All the while Seungwan rolled around aimlessly on the floor behind her.  
  


“Let’s go, baby,” Joohyun held her hand out behind her as she opened the doors, motioning for Seungwan to come with.  
  


“Where we going, mummy?” the curious voice came as she was being buckled in.  
  


“Somewhere very special, Wannie.”  
  


“Yay, park time!”  
  


Seungwan was practically vibrating in her seat from the excitement.  
  


_Silly puppy._  
  


It was special. Of course, Seungwan was too young to understand its significance then, but she would grow to realise it soon enough. Still, despite being a smidge bummed at not pulling up to the usual playground she was so terribly fond of, the girl showed just as much enthusiasm for what greeted them behind the huge sliding doors, only too happy to be spending time with her precious mummy.  
  


Inquisitive, wide eyes scanned each aisle she was led into, tiny chuffs of awe escaping her every so often as rows and rows of every colour her young mind could think of was displayed right there before her.  
  


“You can pick any one, baby,” Joohyun sang, bending down to scoop the girl off the floor so she could get a better look at the selections up top, “See any you like?”  
  


Seungwan wriggled eagerly in her grasp, pointing at a particular hue on one of the dangling bits of material that caught her eye. Joohyun readjusted the girl in her arms before reaching up to unhook it from where it hung.  
  


“You sure, Wannie?” she sounded surprised at the relatively adult choice; a midnight blue. She assumed the girl would’ve gone for a livelier shade, but she knew the decision was final with the way Seungwan was nodding and taking curious little whiffs of the foreign material as if it would help her understand the colour better.  
  


“You don’t like this cute blue one?” Joohyun shook the girl gently and pointed to a much lighter, pastel blue.  
  


But Seungwan immediately clutched the one she’d originally chosen, shaking her head, not even bothering to look twice.  
  


“This one like me, and mummy,” she innocuously punctuated each subject with a finger pointed to her baby blue jumper and then at Joohyun’s own, black one.  
  


At that moment, the vampiress felt her entire being completely shatter by this exhibition of boundless innocence and thought. The girl was barely out of puppyhood, yet she could pick out the perfect amalgamation of her own preferences and Joohyun’s. It solidified the decision that night when she decided to take her in, absolutely over the moon at how she’d earned the girl’s trust in such a short time frame. It wasn’t every day that you got to experience such joy when your whole life till now had been a testament to loneliness and selfishness. It wasn’t every day that someone like Seungwan just stumbled her way in to instantly warm your stone-cold heart. It was a chance that swooped past once in a blue moon, luck be in the air that night to the one who caught it.  
  


And Joohyun thanked her every day for giving her that chance.  
  


Not trusting herself to not break down right there in the store, Joohyun simply nodded in agreement, kissing a confused Seungwan on the forehead before setting her down again and guiding her to the cashiers. It wasn’t uncommon for Seungwan to be showered in compliments on how cute or well behaved she was wherever they went, and it had quite frankly gotten a little embarrassing for the vampiress to have to keep shyly nodding and thanking the same people ten times in a row.  
  


...  
  


Joohyun hadn’t even shut the doors before Seungwan jumped out of her arms and zipped straight for the TV, narrowly missing the edge of the coffee table as she awkwardly clambered onto the sofa. Clumsily fiddling with the remote, she pressed the big red button on the top, the one button she knew, to resume where she’d left off.  
  


_Oh puppy,_ Joohyun inwardly tsked as she locked up for the night, _we’re gonna have to curb TV time, aren’t we?_  
  


She set her keys onto the counter and took a minute to admire the adjustable collar in midnight blue. Yes, it was perfect beyond fraction of a doubt. Her Wannie was so clever, so-  
  


“Mummy!” the shriek from the living room jolted her out of blissful reminiscence, “play with Wannie!”  
  


_Yes, yes. Your wish will forever be my command, Wannie._  
  


Snapping the box shut, she placed it in the drawer in preparation for the very special occasion that would come up before either of them knew it; her first birthday as Joohyun’s little girl. It was almost too overwhelming to be true.  
  


But for now….  
  


Seungwan yelped in surprise, immediately dissolving into endless bouts of high-pitched laughter as Joohyun had snuck up behind her, only to playfully wrestle her onto her back, both Seungwan’s hands in one of her own as she pinned them above her head and wiggled her fingers in her armpits.  
  


“Uh oh, Wannie, here comes… the Tickle Monster!”  
  


The girl was going crazy underneath her, kicking and squirming as she tried to shy away from the tickling fingers. Now resorting to attempting to nip at Joohyun’s hand when she found she couldn’t get away.  
  


“Oh, trying to bite me, puppy?” Joohyun teased, laughing freely herself at Seungwan’s infectious stream of giggles, “naughty girl, now you’re gonna get it.”  
  


Seungwan squealed, puffy cheeks flushing a bright pink as Joohyun lifted her jumper and blew a raspberry right onto her tummy. The vampiress relented the tickles, letting a tuckered out Seungwan catch her breath while she brushed her own hair back.  
  


“Come here, baby,” she said patting the sofa and curling her arm out beside her to create a space for cuddling.  
  


Seungwan yawned as soon as she felt a hand start to roll her ear where it folded over. A smile crept up Joohyun’s face when Seungwan leaned into her dexterous fingers as she began massaging them at the base, drawing happy little noises from her tired puppy.  
  


“Can you be good and cuddle with mummy while she watches her movie?” Joohyun glanced down at the girl already fast asleep in her lap, velvet ears twitching in contentment.  
  


The vampiress chuckled before flipping the channels and making herself comfortable.


	5. introduced.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> actually not too sure about this chapter, but i was just sure i wanted the rest of the members to meet little seungwannie. :)

“Hold still Wannie-ah!”  
  


The bedroom was filled with sounds of elation, as a vampiress was trying her absolute best to get an overly excited Seungwan dressed. The rather cliché but nonetheless adorable black hoodie with a tiny, brown Jindo puppy Joohyun had embroidered onto the plush fabric was slightly too big for the girl, but as any mother would say: _you’ll grow into it._  
  


“Wannie, look!” she exclaimed, lifting the huge hood off Seungwan’s head and pointing at the embroidery through the mirror, “you’re one of those! Mummy got the Jindo one for you. Do you like it, baby?”  
  


A lopsided grin was all the response she needed, ruffling the girl’s hair and giving them both a once over in the full length mirror before motioning for the living room.  
  


“When they will be here?” Joohyun looked down to see her little heart-squeeze tugging at her sleeve.  
  


“Soon, don’t worry. Be a good girl and help mummy get drinks prepared?”  
  


The vampiress melted when she saw the puppy’s eyes form happy little crescent moons all the way through the hallway to the kitchen.  
  


…  
  


It was a couple weeks ago, and Joohyun had been winding down after a long day of looking after Seungwan when she’d gotten the call. She should’ve expected it really, but she immediately cursed her one-track mind, smacking herself in the forehead when she saw who it was on the caller id.  
  


“Hello? Unnie, hello?”  
  


Joohyun softened at the voice over the receiver.  
  


“Yes, Seulgi-ah,” she replied, a slight guilt tinging her tone, “how’re you and the girls?”  
  


She heard a scoff and muffled voices in the distance. Seemed like it was a good time.  
  


“We’re fine unnie, how’re _you_ , more to the point…”  
  


_Uh oh,_ Joohyun cringed at the thought, _this can’t go well. It wasn’t like I was never going to tell them…_  
  


“Yeah!” Yerim boomed in the background, “you’ve missed like four hunts now! Where have you been? Do you have a girlfriend, unnie?”  
  


_Oh gosh, the hunts, right!_  
  


Joohyun may have been more of a lone hunter and a lone vampiress in general, but she had a handful of vampire friends so close she could call them family. They’d organise small group hunts every now and again, outside of normal meetups and hangouts. As much as Joohyun liked going solo, she always looked forward to being able to hunt with her best friends and little sisters. The guilt of essentially ignoring her other family, being so caught up in the newest addition, ate away at her conscience. She’d definitely meant to tell them, but it had just slipped her mind, and a part of her thought it best to wait till Seungwan was more grown and comfortably settled in before introducing several new faces. Especially since they very often, just like her little puppy, could get just a bit too overexcited.  
  


But the older woman had to laugh at that last question.  
  


_A girlfriend? No, Yerim, unnie has something far, far better._  
  


“Well guys…”  
  


There was a slight pause before the vampiress summoned up the breath to both apologise and explain herself in one go.  
  


“I’m sorry I’ve been distant, it really wasn’t on purpose, I love and miss you all a lot. But I’ve had a lot on my plate recently… you see… I was on a hunt and I-”  
  


The woman choked on her words before continuing.  
  


“I may have caught a little hybrid puppy… well not, ‘caught’ per se, I’d say more the circumstances of the night happened to lure our hear-”  
  


“Unnie, you’re rambling again, just spit it out,” Sooyoung exasperatedly interjected, earning chuffs of endearment from the other two.  
  


They’d suspected something was up with their poor unnie when they hadn’t been asked over to Joohyun’s in over two months now, when they’d usually be round there at least once a week.  
  


“A-and I didn’t feed… I… I kept her instead. She’s living with me…”  
  


Joohyun had to pause to pull the phone away from her ear to check the call hadn’t just cut off because of the indefinite silence on the other end.  
  


Nope, they were still on the line.  
  


“G-guys? I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner, I was going to, trust me! It was just so much to take in at the same time… I still can’t believe I did it sometimes, but I definitely want to get you guys acquainted,” she apologised fervently, worried that she had upset her precious dongsaengs with the sudden news.  
  


“You wanna say something or…?”  
  


Joohyun exhaled a breath she didn’t even realise she was holding till all three girls broke the silence at once.  
  


“You… have… a… _PUPPY_ _?!_ ”  
  


“Unnie, why didn’t you tell us?! Oh my god when can we meet her? Is she cute? How old is she?”  
  


“How long ago did you find her? What hybrid is she?”  
  


Gentle, relieved chuckles left Joohyun’s lips. It felt like everyone on earth was speaking at once, all equally as eager to get answers to their pressing questions.  
  


“Don’t worry guys,” she giggled reassuringly, “Come over this weekend and I’ll catch you up on everything.”  
  


Agreements and plans were made the fastest they’ve ever been made before and it was settled.  
  


_Wannie-ah, get ready for a hell of a lot of love._  
  


…  
  


“What’s this mummy?” a curious Seungwan inquired, peering into the bulging packet of crimson fitted snugly into her palms, “it’s so red?”  
  


Joohyun hummed and turned around, slightly unsure of what to say when she caught sight of her pup inspecting the prepacked blood bags she’d laid out on the table in preparation for the other three vampiressess.  
  


“Uh, honey that’s juice,” she spoke tentatively, carefully reaching out to prise it out of the girl’s grip.  
  


Despite the hint of awkwardness, Seungwan’s innocent eyes lit up at ‘juice’.  
  


“Wah! Can Wannie try some?”  
  


Joohyun almost choked out loud, only just managing to swallow the lump in her throat.  
  


“N-no, Wannie,” she said perhaps a little too quickly, noticing Seungwan’s head cock, confused ears flopping over one another, “this is…uh, very special juice that only adults can drink. It’s not for puppies, okay?”  
  


She cooed when she saw soft, chocolate ears droop in acceptance, reaching to briefly roll the deflated thing in her fingers.  
  


“Here,” she quipped, lifting the mood as she replaced Seungwan’s empty palms with an orange juice box, “good girls can have orange juice.”  
  


Big, brown eyes brightened too easily again as a fluffy tail disappeared round the corner into the now immaculately tidied up living room. The mountain of books and guides were still there, but at least they were in some sort of order rather than in the huge heap they had previously been in. Much less could be said for the multitude of chew toys and toys in general scattered on the floor, making just as much of a mess as the books used to. Joohyun minded it much less, though. It was oddly comforting.  
  


Back in the kitchen, the vampiress didn’t even have time to rethink the situation before the familiar sound of her doorbell rang out, sending her rushing to answer the door and eliciting a surprised little yelp from the other room.  
  


Joohyun had barely cracked the door open before she was flooded with hugs and affection, something no one else other than the people currently giving it to her knew she enjoyed as much as she did. She smiled as she felt Seulgi’s arms crushing her in her stupidly strong vampire grip, the other two already setting the small gifts and desserts on the kitchen counter ready for later.  
  


The vampiress knew the shrill squeals meant that a certain puppy had been discovered by three adoring vampiressess. She almost laughed out loud when she turned into the living room, only to see three girls fighting over who got to hold and pet the puppy next. All while an oblivious Seungwan sat right in the middle of the commotion, adorable as ever with her head cocked and pink tongue lolled out the corner of her grin, panting happily as she looked at her mummy with an expression that seemed to say, ‘these are some weird puppies… but I love them!’  
  


Joohyun clicked her tongue as she set the tray of juice and blood bags down on the coffee table, minding to step over the gleefully wagging tail.  
  


“Hey,” she tutted, not interfering but keeping a watchful eye, “be gentle you guys, play nice. She’s still young.”  
  


This seemed to get the message across and the three eased up, now just petting Seungwan all at once. Her icy grey eyes warmed when she saw her Wannie practically floating on Cloud 9 with all the scratches and pets making her eyelids heavy with the pleasant overstimulation; head and chin scratches, light belly tickles and coos of praise and adoration.  
  


Her young mind wasn’t aware euphoria could skyrocket like this, and it blew her out of the water.  
  


“She’s so dumb, unnie,” Yerim chided lovingly, faking throwing Seungwan’s toy and tucking her hand behind her back, watching as the puppy glanced around in visible confusion, trying to locate the magically disappearing thing, “it’s adorable.”  
  


“Aw, you two have something in common, then,” Joohyun nonchalantly teased back not missing a beat, earning loud hand-over-mouth siren wails from the other two vampiressess, much to Yerim’s shock.  
  


They laughed when the youngest blushed brightly, cheeks fluffed out and flustered.  
  


The remainder of the evening dissolved into conversation mainly revolving round Seungwan and her very unexpected but very welcomed arrival. The girls just let Joohyun do the talking, listening intently with occasional ‘ooh’s’ and ‘aww’s’ when the recount took a particularly adorable twist or when Joohyun was simply describing one of Seungwan’s endearingly amusing antics. They were caught up in no time, all unanimously agreeing that their unnie had made the right decision in taking this lonely puppy in.  
  


“Unnie, Wannie’s so cute we almost forgive you for ignoring us for two months,” Sooyoung joked in between sips of the machine-vended blood bag.  
  


The oldest gave an apologetic shrug and the mood was good as laughter filled the expanse. Yerim and Sooyoung went out to get the food from the kitchen out to the living room where Joohyun and Seulgi were arranging the pillows and blankets in preparation for the long overdue movie night. They usually watched horror movies when they were together, but for the sake of a certain someone, made an exception this time to watch an animation instead.  
  


The two maknaes returned with trays of various desserts, Seulgi and Joohyun already comfortable on the sofa with Seungwan in between them, cuddling into the eldest’s embrace. Sooyoung and Yerim dragged beanbags and the blankets laid down for them into position before starting the movie.  
  


The three other vampiressess were surprisingly engrossed in the plotline, despite insistently professing their distaste for cute animations. Joohyun simply grinned as she observed them glued to the screen, the movie couldn’t possibly have been further from her mind as she proceeded to glance down at the reason for their instant change of heart, no doubt.  
  


_You did it, Wannie,_ she said wordlessly to the innocently yawning puppy, _you turned these big, bad vampires into big, soft babies._  
  


Soon enough, it was well into the early hours of the next morning, none of them noticing the pitch blackness outside until the movie was over. All eyes turned to face the puppy, fast asleep, curled into Joohyun’s lap, tail swishing lazily on Seulgi’s thigh and making her giggle.  
  


Her dongsaengs helped her tidy up, making sure to leave as quietly as they could, still fighting over who left the last hushed whisper of how much they loved the new family addition. After they’d left, Joohyun found herself carrying a dead-weight Seungwan up to their bedroom, vigilantly getting her cleaned up and changed into her onesie before tucking her in and pressing the gentlest goodnight kiss on the unconsciously twitching velvet ears.  
  


Returning downstairs to finish the last of the dishes, Joohyun leaned into the sink, letting the cold water run down her hands. She couldn’t help but recount today’s hectically wonderful events, from the meeting of her vampire family to their newest hybrid addition, to the lovely familial feeling she forgot how much she missed when they just sat and chatted about anything and everything. Of course, Seungwan provided Joohyun that warm, fuzzy feeling far and beyond, but it was just as lovely in a different way to be able to spend time with her own kind whom she practically grew up with.  
  


An exhausted vampiress snuggled into the warmth of the duck down duvet, wrapping herself and Seungwan into it. Without her even realising, her hand had trailed up and was now absentmindedly tracing circles over the soft fur of her ears, making Seungwan mumble in her sleep a little.  
  


“Unnie, it’s been a while… why don’t you join us on our next hunt? You can take your time, but we’re worried about you and your health. Think about it, yeah?”  
  


She thought more about what Seulgi had said when it had just been the two of them, but ultimately decided not to ponder on it for too long. She shoved the trivial dilemma out of her mind for later, now focusing on the little girl who made the entire world seem unimportant.  
  


_I’ll always protect you, Wannie._


	6. decide.

_The stars dusted diamonds across the innocent night sky; mirroring the innocence about to be torn apart as the hunter stalked closer to the trapped prey as it struggled and whimpered in distress, unable to free itself from the weight atop it. Blood-red lips parted, allowing a devilish tongue to lick its way over hungrily bared fangs. The smell of blood so fresh caused a whirlwind in the surroundings, splitting the calm in too deliberate a fashion to ignore. With one swift movement, the predator mounted its prey, a steely grip in adolescent horns holding its head down as blood-hungry fangs pierced through its long neck. The haplessly kicking hooves grew still and the air was cleared of any more sounds as pupils rolled back for the last time. The taste was unparalleled, and as she took the first drink of the night, her adrenaline spiked like it always did. She drank like she’d been starved for years._  
  


_More and more until-_  
  


Joohyun woke with a start, jolting upright and smacking a tired, pale hand to feel the sheen of moisture on her forehead.  
  


The day was just dawning.  
  


Beside her, a curled up Seungwan snored lightly.  
  


_God, this is the third time this week._  
  


She’d been having such disturbing dreams lately. Well, frankly speaking, she wouldn’t have been one bit shaken by them had she been alone. She would have gone as far as to consider them very good dreams, in the past. But not now. She couldn’t. Not while she slept next to the girl that held her by the heart with terribly innocent hands. The prey in her dream may have just been a random deer, but she’d flash back to seeing her Seungwan once trapped like that. The way it struggled against the roped net to get away, the whines and whimpers, Joohyun simply couldn’t shake her mind free of the horrifying parallels. It was as if she was scared that in the next dream she’d open her eyes after she’d sunk her fangs and catch sight of those furry, pointy ears she loved so dearly.  
  


It was a jarring image.  
  


Still, it wasn’t uncommon, seeing as it had actually been months since her last live kill. This was just nature’s way of reminding her of who she was.  
  


_A bloody monster, if you ask me._  
  


She felt nauseous even thinking about it.  
  


She looked down at Seungwan, wrapped in the duvet and nuzzled blissfully into her side. This. This, was her reason for change. That blameless, cute face, the way she lapped up Joohyun’s love like she was her actual mother; the absolute perfection of her little puppy made her feel like both a mother and a monster. It made her want to run away from herself, but at the same time never leave Seungwan behind.  
  


Where Seungwan was, Joohyun would be too.  
  


They needed each other.  
  


With a burdened sigh, the vampiress reclined her tired head onto the pillows, letting herself as well as her thoughts flitter into the realms of a calming doze.  
  


The bundle next to her stirred not once.  
  


…

Several hours later, a pair of ears wisped against Joohyun’s lips, tickling them and eventually rousing the vampiress from her slumber. Cracking a smile and an eye open, she realised what had woken her and exhaled in a huff of adoration, her breath causing chocolate ears to flick. Slowly but surely, the puppy burrito peered up at her through heavy, drowsy eyes.  
  


Seungwan greeted her mummy with the sleepiest of grins, prompting a string of loving coos from Joohyun.  
  


“You’re warm, huh, little Wannie?”  
  


The laziest nod.  
  


“You want to get out of bed now?”  
  


A very definite head shake.  
  


“But you want breakfast, don’t you? My puppy is hungry, isn’t she?”  
  


A small pause before a nod and a tiny yawn.  
  


Any qualms Joohyun had with herself she felt completely wash themselves away whenever she interacted with Seungwan like this in the mornings. She hated to play favourites, but bedtimes and cosy mornings were, by far, the times she looked forward to most. The vampiress let out a defeated huff, reaching up to pet Seungwan’s hair, smoothing her warm ears so they were flat against her head, chuckling after each stroke when they flopped back upright and folded over again.  
  


She knew she had her work cut out for her.  
  


“You want breakfast in bed, don’t you.”  
  


To be honest, she didn’t even have to wait for the answer… but she did anyway.  
  


“… mhm…” came the mumbled reply.  
  


Seungwan gave a little whine when she felt Joohyun leave her side, the mattress dipping slightly as she stood up.  
  


“I’ll be right back Wannie.”  
  


…  
  


Joohyun leaned against the counter, her gaze was fixed on the bubbling pot of creamy mushroom soup but her mind was far from present. She came to the sudden realisation that she couldn’t remember the last time she’d had a proper feed. The last time she felt her fangs sink in to warm flesh. She remembered what lay in the garage, and in exactly which corner she’d casually tossed her trap, paying it absolutely no attention since. Just for a moment, Joohyun closed her eyes and let her thoughts whisk her away into a brief blizzard of impossible fantasy.  
  


_The crisp, cool breeze of the night filled her senses as she poised herself behind a nearby tree, hearing sharpened to a point for that delicious sound of the trap setting off. The scent of few werewolves hunting in the distance stung her nose, but she paid no mind, focusing only on the feast she was about to ravage. Oh yes, she could see it in the shadows; a pair of antlers. There was a small rustle in the bushes before a hoof stepped out, bringing the rest of the animal out with it. Oh god it was so close, Joohyun felt her head spinning with the aroma of fresh blood. She screwed her eyes shut and waited for that heavenly sound… just then-_  
  


“Oh crap, oh crap!”  
  


The vampiress cursed out loud when she realised the soup had been done for god knows how long. If it boiled any further, there’d be nothing left. She sighed in disappointment as her trail of thought was interrupted, cutting her little fantasy frustratingly short. She felt slightly empty as she filled the bowl with the thick liquid. Setting it aside to cool off, she sliced some freshly baked white bread to complete the meal. After discovering Seungwan was partial to white bread, the vampiress took it upon herself to read every recipe on the face of the earth pretty much, making it her single-handed mission to learn to bake the fluffiest, whitest bread there could ever be.  
  


And she succeeded, too.  
  


Joohyun inwardly beamed at the thought of the way her puppy’s eyes lit up like the sun when she tried her craft for the first time.  
  


_Anything for you, puppy._  
  


And as much as she couldn’t deny the surprisingly natural desire to protect Seungwan at all costs, a part of her knew she was denying her own desires and needs in the process. Don’t get her wrong, she didn’t mind it, not in the slightest. It hadn’t proven itself much of a dilemma at all, really; taking care of and being with her precious Seungwan outweighed feeding on a random animal every month or so beyond a sliver of a doubt.  
  


_I choose you. I’ll always choose you, Wannie._  
  


Though that didn’t stop her interest from piquing every now and again.  
  


Tray of fresh, steamy breakfast carefully balanced in steady hands, the vampiress made her way back upstairs, shifting the tray to one hand for the split second it took her to open the door. As she neared the bed, icy grey eyes rolled to the heavens as she heard tiny snores emitting from the small lump in the duvet. It seemed like Seungwan couldn’t handle the 15 minutes of being alone while her mummy made breakfast, so she surrendered herself to the clutches of DreamWorld yet again.  
  


_Aigo, puppies sleep so much, don’t they? And I’m gonna have to tire you out for bed tonight again, aren’t I, Wannie?_  
  


Joohyun snorted in disbelief, already picturing herself ‘ear-tricking’ Seungwan’s rambunctiousness out of her when she tried to escape bed time tonight, which was a given.  
  


She set the tray down and gently blew on the coffee-coloured ears stuck out from under the duvet, playing for a while before actually waking her. She smiled as they twitched from her breath, causing a shift and a drowsy head to lift up.  
  


“There we go, Wannie-ah,” Joohyun encouraged, smiling and propping the stretching pup up against the pillows, “up and at em’. Mummy has breakfast for you.”  
  


As if on cue, Seungwan’s stomach rumbled and her eyelids fluttered as her nose poked the air in searching little sniffs for where that delightful smell could possibly be coming from.  
  


The vampiress laughed adoringly as she got back into bed with Seungwan, not missing how those big, brown eyes widened at today’s menu. She did a taste test on herself first, then, when it was a satisfying temperature, guided the spoon to Seungwan who inhaled the lot in under 10 minutes, ignoring her warnings to eat slowly.  
  


In the end, Joohyun actually surrendered both hands in resignation, amusement plastered on her pretty features as she watched her puppy feed herself.  
  


She didn’t even mind the clinking of the spoon when it hit the bottom of the bowl, overjoyed that Seungwan was eating well.  
  


After she was all full up, Joohyun carefully placed the tray on the ground next to her.  
  


“Thanks mummy,” Seungwan wrapped her arms around Joohyun, initiating a cuddle, “love y- _hic!_ ”  
  


Seungwan froze, immediately looking up at Joohyun with big, watery eyes.  
  


Joohyun simply brought Seungwan closer, smiling knowingly into her hair as she rubbed soothing circles on her back, comforting her as she rode out the waves of hiccups shaking her tiny body. The girl was clinging onto Joohyun for dear life.  
  


_Aigo, what am I going to do with you, Wannie-ah._  
  


Just as she finished that thought, they both jumped when the loud buzzing of her phone reverberated round the room.  
  


Joohyun reluctantly broke her hold, reaching over to swipe the vibrating thing off the side table. Seungwan was ever so comfortably snuggled up into her embrace that she found herself unconsciously controlling her breathing so she wouldn't shift the girl too much.  
  


_Oh yeah,_ she thought plainly when she saw who was calling, _it’s already the end of the month._  
  


“Hey Seulgi-ah,” Joohyun greeted, absentmindedly carding her fingers through the blonde locks of the little puppy nestled into her side, oblivious to the conversation that was about to take place.  
  


“Hi unnie!”  
  


The cheerful reply tugged upwards at the corners of the vampiress’ mouth.  
  


“So have you thought about what I said?”  
  


Joohyun nodded before she spoke, realising Seulgi couldn’t see her.  
  


“Um, yeah I have…”  
  


She knew the silence on the other end was her cue to carry on.  
  


“I’ve been thinking about it a lot, actually. Been having dreams and things like that, too.”  
  


“Ah, I see,” Seulgi hummed in acknowledgement, “I started having dreams too. You remember that time I drank those gross vended blood bags from uni?”  
  


Joohyun chuckled fondly as the picture resurfaced itself crystal clearly; Seulgi cramming away at her study, empty packets and straws everywhere. The girl hadn’t showered in days and it was by luck of a miracle, no less, that Joohyun had forced her way into the younger’s apartment after approximately 45 missed calls that day. When she set her eyes on the mess of a vampiress splayed out on the floor amongst the empty coffee cans and blood bags, Seulgi was practically hauled out of her own apartment and forced to live with Joohyun the entire course of the examination period just so she could bring her out, usually against her will, to hunt when she did.  
  


Seulgi resented her for intervening when she needed to cram as much information as her exhausted brain would allow, but eventually thanked her for keeping her sane and relatively healthy through her stress.  
  


“I just needed fresh blood,” Seulgi continued, jarring Joohyun from her flashback, “I felt so much better after that. I know you have Seungwannie to look after, but I’m also concerned about you… we’re going tomorrow night, if you haven’t forgotten.”  
  


A short pause.  
  


“So, what do you say?”  
  


The raven-haired vampiress bit her lip in thought before proceeding.


	7. biscuits.

The next morning arrived quicker than usual, much to Joohyun's annoyance. She hadn't actually been looking forward to any of this. It was quite the opposite, in fact. An uncomfortable nerve pinched relentlessly at her sensibility and she found herself questioning the decision to hunt over and over again, not getting a wink of sleep the entire night.  
  


_It won’t hurt to leave her for a few hours, right?_   
  


Her hunts usually lasted anywhere between 6 to 8 hours, the latter being only when food was scarce, which did happen from time to time. The length of her hunt was never fully in her hands, more so a combination of the selection of prey and her thirst.  
  


_Oh no, yeah… it’s going to take a lot longer than usual… this is the longest I’ve gone without a kill. God knows when I’ll be able to stop myself._   
  


It terrified and ignited her simultaneously.  
  


The mere thought of the insatiable draining that was due tonight lit a flame someplace inside her; someplace deep and neglected. At the same time, however, she didn’t want to be gone too long. The girl could barely stand half an hour in a different room as the vampiress, regardless of whether she was under the same roof. Even if she was preoccupied playing, it would always be close by.  
  


Seungwan’s separation anxiety was the biggest factor to consider as far as Joohyun was concerned.  
  


The day went on as usual, but something just felt a little out of place and Joohyun couldn’t quite put her finger on it. Clearly it showed in her behaviour, because she felt an apprehensive little tug at her sleeve when they were both watching Seungwan’s favourite cartoon after lunch.  
  


“Mummy?” Seungwan asked earnestly, “what’s wrong with clock? Why keep watching?”  
  


The vampiress let out a disgruntled puff and fluttered her eyelids a couple times to snap herself out of her trance, turning to glance down at her concerned little puppy.  
  


_What? Have I been staring at the clock this entire time?_   
  


“W-wha-no, no baby,” she stuttered an unprepared response, “I’m just…”  
  


She fell silent.  
  


After contemplating for a minute, she reached forward to mute the TV, shifting on the sofa so they were now sitting face to face. She briefly scratched the base of Seungwan’s ears to relax her before taking both hands into her own trembling ones.  
  


She didn’t know who she was trying to calm.  
  


“Wannie-ah…” she drew her puppy’s name out in a heaved breath, unsure of how to put what her mind wanted to say, “can you be a good girl for me and go to bed early tonight? Mummy has to leave for a while, okay?”  
  


Sad, watery eyes blinked up at Joohyun, pulling at her already delicate heart strings.  
  


“But why, mummy? Why leaving Wannie?”  
  


Seungwan cocked her head, genuinely puzzled at the news. This was the first time Joohyun had ever wanted to leave the house out without taking her with. The innocence in her voice shattered the vampiress and she instinctively curled her arms around the confused girl, petting her reassuringly.  
  


“Mummy has to take care of herself sometimes,” she tried to word it as best she could when all she could revert to was how upset she seemed to have made the girl, “she’s just going to play with her friends for a while, okay?”  
  


“Bu-Wannie wanna play too!”  
  


 _Oh way to go, idiot,_ Joohyun could’ve smacked herself right then, _perfect choice of words. Did you really have to say ‘play’?!_  
  


After many back and forths of ‘why’s’ and ‘don’t worry’s’, an irritated Seungwan pouted, turning away to curl up into a ball of solidarity. Joohyun pursed her frustrated lips, knowing there was no point in trying to reason any further. But as much as she knew her puppy was needy, she knew she was stronger than ever, and that would be enough to carry her through her second night alone since she moved in.  
  


She hoped… _trusted,_ that Seungwan had _that_ much faith in her, at least.  
  


“Come on, Wannie-ah, stop sulking, you’re a big girl,” she said, reaching out to gently grasp the fluffy tail drooped sadly next to her, “It’ll only be for a while… mummy will be back before you know it.”  
  


Despite being ‘mad’ at her, the mopey puppy allowed her tail to be held, which was quite rare, Joohyun had to admit. She visibly relaxed at the contact, giving a little sigh of contentment and almost jumping right back into the vampiress’ arms. But she remained resolute nonetheless, determined not to let Joohyun know she’d won her over so easily.  
  


However, a knowing smile crawled up the corners of the vampiress’ lips.  
  


 _Gotchu Wannie,_ she thought triumphantly as she upped the ante on the tail rubs, those happy little pants and ear twitches coming to surface soon enough, _can’t stay mad at me for long._  
  


…  
  


Getting Seungwan into bed that night was a haze of events she couldn’t really piece together. Her actions were almost robotic as the anxiety of tonight’s hunt crept up to the very forefront of her thoughts. Her brain was an unstoppable whirlpool of worries and emotions.  
  


_What if I get carried away? I have to keep track of time._   
  


_What if Seungwannie gets peckish later on?_   
  


_She’ll definitely get thirsty…_   
  


_God, why do I have to be this way. Why do I have to leave Wannie alone for so long?_   
  


_I hope I don’t lose it and go savage. Keep yourself under control, Joohyun._   
  


_Don’t. Lose. Track._   
  


A couple of those queries were easily sorted with a plate of biscuits and a warm glass of milk on the bedside where Seungwan could readily access it if she so pleased. The girl grinned and took a big sniff as the freshness wafted up her nose. She never got biscuits before bed… so this must be a treat.  
  


“These are only if you get _really_ hungry, okay Wannie?” Joohyun instructed, waving a stern finger at the puppy whose attention was set on anything _but_ her, obviously.  
  


“Don’t just eat them becau-”  
  


_*cronch cronch cronch cronch*_

“Mm?” Seungwan hadn’t even realised what she’d done until she was gazing up at the vampiress with wide, guilty eyes and both cheeks stuffed with food.  
  


Trying not to let her emotions seep into her expression, Joohyun shook her head, chuckling gently down at her pup who had long broken and was now helping herself to her second dinosaur shaped biscuit.  
  


“Mummy?”  
  


“What is it, baby?”  
  


“Can Wannie finish these before bed…?”  
  


The woman sighed in defeat at the girl innocently gesturing to the plate and cup of milk on the table. God, how could she say no to a face like that?  
  


_How does it feel, huh, Seungwannie? Do you know how adorable you are? You know, don’t you. You know how to get what you want, clever girl._   
  


“Alright, baby,” she relented, eyes widening after stealing a quick glance at the clock, “Mummy has to go now, be a good girl. I’ll be back.”  
  


_Damn it I’m late._   
  


The vampiress straightened up and leaned in to kiss Seungwan on the head, feeling her puppy nuzzle up into her hand scratching behind her ears. Dull thumps from a wagging tail could be heard under the weight of the duvet as Seungwan watched Joohyun turn to make for the door, giving her one last wave and a flying kiss before closing it behind her. She pricked her ears up, listening to the footsteps fading down the stairs and some rustling around in the garage before disappearing completely, a sharp bolt on the door.  
  


Joohyun had taken extra care to double lock the doors. No one was breaking in tonight of all nights, and no one was leaving either. After checking and double-checking the bolts and hinges, she leaned into the door, letting it support the weight of her unease. She closed her eyes, praying everything would go smoothly and that she’d be back to shower Seungwan in cuddles and affection as soon as it was over. Her eyes fluttered open, dropping down briefly to the ropes in her hand, tangled in a clump. At this point the first spikes of adrenaline would usually be pulsing faintly in her core, knowing how utterly quenched her thirst was going to be in a few short moments.  
  


But this just felt like a burden… and she didn’t want to acknowledge why.  
  


It was as though her body wouldn’t let her go. She felt rooted to the floor, super-glued to the big, brass doorknob that was turning her knuckles even paler than what she was used to with how tightly she was gripping it.  
  


Whatever, the sooner I start, the sooner it ends.  
  


_Let’s get this over with._   
  


Joohyun headed in the direction of the nearby forest up the hill.  
  


Funnily enough, the further she got from the house, the further her anxiety felt. 


	8. slip.

The trap was set as soon as the sun did.  
  


Joohyun leaned into a thick tree trunk and stared up at the dense clouds peppered across the deep purple expanse. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath to steady her nerves. The scattered sounds of her best friends feeding nearby reminded her she wasn't alone in this. A slight breeze rustled her raven locks and it sent a surge of adrenaline through her.  
  


Oh yes, it was all coming back.  
  


The vampiress stood poised in the shadows of the trees, letting nature do the rest.

…  
  


Seungwan was growing more restless by the second. She tried to go to sleep, by god she tried. Even counting non-existent sheep on the ceiling to ‘force’ sleep onto her. But of course, without Joohyun there beside her blowing sleepily on her ears or whispering lullabies from behind, it was as good as impossible.  
  


Suddenly, the duck down duvet seemed to make her even colder.  
  


She tossed and turned, but it was no use.  
  


She needed Joohyun.  
  


With an exasperated grunt, the girl swung herself out of bed and marched toward the drawer she’d seen Joohyun fold her clothes neatly into. After a few minutes of haphazard rummaging, she found her favourite blue jumper and sweatpants to match. She cringed when she turned to face the messy mountain of clothes she’d built up on the floor.  
  


No time for that now, though, she was on a mission of utmost importance.  
  


_Mummy will recognise me straight away,_ she thought gleefully, getting herself dressed and feeling like the cleverest girl in all the world.  
  


Socked feet padded downstairs and headed straight for the doors.  
  


_*click*_  
  


Despite the huffing and puffing and putting her whole back into it, that horrible sound whenever she twisted the doorknob reminded her there was no way she was leaving.  
  


Joohyun’s word held true. No one was coming in or out those doors.  
  


Unfortunately for the vampiress, Seungwan was sometimes a tad too smart for her own good.  
  


Sure, no one was getting through the doors… but what if they didn’t need to?  
  


She zipped over to the huge French windows, hoping her thinking out of the box would not let her down. Her heart skipped a beat as she reached a small hand to push the handle down.  
  


Success!  
  


Well… mostly, success.  
  


The door only opened a peep, rudely stopped by the row of heavy potted plants lined neatly up against the outside. It’d be a tight squeeze, but that didn’t phase Seungwan. Her sensitive nose was already picking up Joohyun’s scent and it put both her mind and body on autopilot. Without too much effort, she managed to squirm through the crack, the freshly trimmed lawn grass cushioning her landing.  
  


The girl dusted herself off and immediately set out, letting her eager nose do the guiding.  
  


…  
  


Soon enough, Seungwan found herself in a very familiar patch of land. She cocked a thoughtful brow, trying to clear the vagueness in her mind. Everything seemed so eerily recognisable, yet she wasn’t able to fathom why; the night breeze, the way the trees were imminently shaped.  
  


The way they towered overhead, curving down at the top in an almost caging manner.  
  


Even the darkness possessed a familiar ambiguity.  
  


The deathly stillness just amplified how cold and alone she felt right now.  
  


Hm, but where had she seen this before?  
  


Seungwan scrunched her face and shook her head free of the distraction. She had to focus; her sharp canine instincts were telling her Joohyun was very close now.  
  


_Where cou-_  
  


_*Thwack!*_  
  


The poor girl jumped out of her skin when the deafening sound pierced her delicate ears, causing her to whine, stumbling around and instantly pawing at them in attempt to get rid of the awful ringing it left behind. Apparently, she wasn’t the only one startled by the noise. Her attention snapped up to the flock of crows scattering off into multiple directions from their perches on thin branches.  
  


Then she heard it.  
  


A small whimper, coming from somewhere behind her.  
  


Seungwan whipped around and squinted into the distance. Edging closer and closer to the continuously shifting black shape, the frenzied cries thundering in her brain. She was only a few feet away when eyes widened; why everything about the current situation felt so strange finally dawned on her.  
  


The thick, roped net.  
  


More specifically, the undeniable scent of the person, or vampiress, it belonged to.  
  


_Mummy!_  
  


But the string of panicked whimpers and struggles abruptly skewed that lovely little epiphany into a question.  
  


Why was there a poor young deer caught under it?  
  


This is where Joohyun had found her, after all.  
  


Seungwan, bless but god save her, began down the devastatingly innocent thought path of mirroring Joohyun’s actions the night she was adopted. Getting on her hands and knees with a muted thud, she ever so slowly crept up to hooves kicking helplessly in the air. The slightest crunch of a twig, regardless of whether she’d caused it, made her flinch and snap up. She swallowed thickly as she paused every few inches, pupils darting warily across her field of vision.  
  


Joohyun’s scent was overpowering but she was committed to the task at hand.  
  


_It’s okay,_ she silently reassured the creature, not brave enough to even whisper, but still hoping she’d get her message across, _Wannie’s gonna free you like mummy did to me._  
  


But poor Seungwan’s courage was snapped into pure terror not milliseconds after.  
  


She now felt as horrified as she had felt heroic.  
  


Because right before she felt the coarseness of the net on the tips of her fingers, an enormous gush of wind blew over her from the opposite direction, sending her tumbling backwards into the soft grass.  
  


_Mummy?!_  
  


Seungwan was frantic with dilemma and the jumble of competing thoughts now running amok in her mind. Joohyun was almost unrecognisable; crouched over the screeching baby deer with her face buried in its neck. The shocked girl had originally thought the vampiress had meant to free the animal, but the thought crushed itself and disintegrated faster than she could take her next breath when she saw the slowly growing puddle of crimson seeping from under them both.  
  


Why was Joohyun hurting it?  
  


Why are her eyes such a flaming, icy red?  
  


What are those things in her mouth?!  
  


_That’s mummy… but it’s not…_  
  


Wait, _that’s_ where she remembered those eyes. She knew those eyes. It’d been brief. Fleeting. But she’d seen them on the first day Joohyun found her under that net. The deathly stare she could somehow see right through. Yes, she’d been more than shaken that night. Initially, though. That was more because she’d never seen anything or anyone like Joohyun before… and because Joohyun didn’t hurt her.  
  


But would this have potentially been her? What made it different? Why was she deserving of suffering a fate any different to this young fawn?  
  


Pieces of a hellish nightmare were coming together behind her eyes and there wasn’t a thing she could do to stop looking.  
  


Petrified at what she was witnessing and what she’d just pieced together, she scurried backwards in the dirt until her back hit a solid tree trunk, forcing a yelp from her lungs which she tried to muffle by clamping both hands tightly over her gaping mouth.  
  


Bae Joohyun was so preoccupied with her first drink after such a dreadful drought that she didn’t even pause to inhale until the shrivelled carcass remained. The black cloud in her mind prevented her from focusing on or noticing anything else; just feed. Which is probably the reason she didn’t realise anything was amiss until the fearful whimpers carried on long after she’d drunk to completion.  
  


Confusion contorting her features, Joohyun glanced down at the carcass, wondering how a dead deer could still make those sounds. It took a good two minutes before the cloud of black dimmed just enough for the vampiress to discern the direction of the sound.  
  


It was right next to her.  
  


Thinking it was another potential feed, Joohyun craned her neck sideways to face it with a menacing stare. She purposely made a show of running her blood-stained tongue over glinting fangs, savouring the remnants of her last meal dripping off them and staining the soil.  
  


She must've looked like the devil herself.  
  


But as soon as she beheld the trembling figure curled up against the bark, her fangs retracted faster than they’d ever done before. She shook her head and blinked furiously, forcefully rewiring her famished mind out of its state of blood-lust.  
  


“S-Seung-wan?!” she half yelled, perplexed as to what she was seeing.  
  


Surely this was a figment of her frayed imagination. There was no way Seungwan had gotten out of the house. She’d double locked the doors! It didn’t make any sense!  
  


This was bad, _very_ bad.  
  


And then the even worse realisation that her innocent puppy had just witnessed her slaughter and consume another small animal without a smidge of remorse hit her like a ton of bricks.  
  


The vampiress didn’t even know how to react. She got up, ignoring her stained clothes and face, probably, inching towards the horror-stricken girl.  
  


“W-wan-ah…” the vampiress stuttered, holding a hand out to gently touch Seungwan’s cheek when she got close enough.  
  


Her cold blood ran icier when the girl flinched away from her touch, kicking her legs out in front of her and uselessly pressing her back further into the tree. A frightened tail was wedged between quivering knees, as if she wanted no part of her accessible to Joohyun, as if she wanted to get as far away from her as possible.  
  


She may not have had a heart, but it sure felt like she did in this moment with the way Seungwan’s entire being was absolutely shattering her.  
  


Joohyun froze, hand still extended, barely breathing for fear of jolting her poor Seungwan worse than she’d already been.  
  


The next thing she heard broke her.  
  


“… m-mummy wuh-wanted to… to do that to W-Wah-Wannie… too…?”  
  


Seungwan was peering up at her with red, tear-filled eyes, sniffling uncontrollably as she waited for the answer she desperately didn’t want to hear. Usually lively, chocolate ears were now flattened in fear against her head.  
  


There wasn’t anything on earth she could respond with that would even begin the pitiful attempt at Band-Aiding this appalling gash of a wound her actions tonight had caused.  
  


She tried to will anything, _anything,_ out of her impossibly dry mouth.  
  


But she couldn’t.  
  


Her throat was sealed shut and her brain couldn’t string together any semblance of a coherent thought.  
  


All she wanted was to take Seungwan in her arms and tell her whatever it took to rebuild the trust she had single-handedly set ablaze right in front of those dreadfully innocent brown eyes. She wanted to feel her puppy melt into her embrace like she always did. But that wasn’t going to happen.  
  


It was devastating, being just inches away from the girl she wanted nothing more than to just comfort and hold, but every second she hesitated, another wall was built in between them. Every delay caused Seungwan to fall further and further away from her, until she was left clawing at the mere memory of a friend.  
  


Joohyun hung her head as heavy sobs crippled her. Scalding waterfalls cascaded down her pale cheeks, falling in remorseful drops at her knees as she begged her puppy for any shred of forgiveness or understanding she could possibly find in her broken heart.  
  


She begged her for a second chance.  
  


But there was no one there to listen.  
  


Joohyun blinked heavy tears out of cloudy eyes to realise her only company was the lonely whistle of the gentle breeze.  
  


Seungwan was gone.  
  


She'd slipped away before she could even notice.  
  


_You fucking monster._  
  


She barely registered the concerned voices calling out to her from three separate directions.  
  


“Unnie? Unnie!”  
  


“Joohyun unnie, where are you?”  
  


“Are you okay? We heard a voice…”  
  


She just shook her head, abandoning the hunt and leaving early.  
  


Joohyun cried all the way home.  
  


The double locks felt like it took a millennium to unlock. She didn’t even want to think about how this could’ve happened. But her answer was there as soon as she stepped in. The thin material of the curtain was fluttering silently against the French window that stood ajar behind it.  
  


It was taunting her, beckoning her, highlighting her carelessness.  
  


In a fit of uncharacteristic grief, she stormed over and roughly slammed it shut again, not caring at how the glass shook threateningly, a few cracks spidering across the planes. Grabbing the flimsy white curtain, she ripped it right up the middle, destroying any reminder of the shattering series of events that had just taken place.  
  


She didn’t go upstairs. She couldn’t bear to.  
  


Joohyun fell onto the sofa, unbothered at the dirt and blood now staining the expensive material. It was probably unsalvageable now, but to hell with it, so were her feelings. Why destroying her own things made her feel like she wasn’t the only one in pain she didn’t know.  
  


She knew only that she would readily burn it all for a chance to turn back time.  
  


She was a fool, undeserving of any of it.  
  


Joohyun wept bitterly. Then she bawled. She ungracefully rode the wave of utter disbelief and shock, wanting to drown the entire time.  
  


She cried her swollen eyes out until she couldn’t anymore.  
  


Until she had nothing left.  
  


Until her breathing eventually evened and her wrist fell limp against the sofa.


	9. feel.

Vampires didn’t cry.  
  


They didn’t feel.  
  


They were empty. All they lived for was the thrill of the hunt; the kill.  
  


Except… that wasn’t true.  
  


If it was, she'd racked up to be a pretty sorry excuse for one.  
  


Because Joohyun felt.  
  


She felt it all. God only knows how many nights had passed since. Everything that happened, everything she did, she could never keep track of a single thing. If there was one thing she remembered, it was the constant swelling around her red, tired eyes; the weight of her eyelids increasing with every passing moment, and the perpetual urge to just go to sleep.  
  


It was an endless battle between the tears and the self-hate and pity.  
  


There was a thin crack in the ceiling, something she hadn’t noticed before. But when your days and nights were spent staring up at it from the sofa, it was hard to miss.  
  


She stuttered a cold, shaky breath.  
  


“Oh Wannie… how was I before you…”  
  


It was a spoken thought, addressed to no one but to anyone who was willing to listen. She wondered but she never pondered; she didn’t have to, nor did she care. Life before Seungwan was an atrocity she was only too happy to brush past.  
  


She felt it all; and it was pathetic.  
  


Every emotion known to man, Joohyun had experienced in a single night; grief, rage, acceptance, and everything under the terribly cold sun. It frightened her immensely. The tangle of feeling she’d gotten herself into wasn’t like anything she’d expect in her lifetime. She had made peace with being alone, happy and fated to leave that vacancy between her ribs.  
  


But fate doesn’t always listen, does it?  
  


Seungwan was there to fill that void; the hollow space where her heart would’ve been. Just her; her scent, her memories, the love and laughter. These precious moments Joohyun had kept locked away; safe, and only for her to glance upon. Something that night had bled her, though, the way it yanked the rug from beneath her feet, toppling her into a sadness she'd never known. It felt like she’d never recover from it. She’d stay an empty shell.  
  


Intrusively angry thoughts tore their way to the forefront of her cluttered mind.  
  


_How could you have let it come to this?_  
  


_Why didn’t you do more… you could’ve stopped her that night._  
  


_You’ve done this to yourself, you don’t deserve her._  
  


The proposition of stopping Seungwan that night haunted her every dream. It was so easy. There would’ve been no way the girl could’ve escaped had she just grabbed her and held her there.  
  


But what good would that do? Seungwan was beyond terrified.  
  


Anything that left Joohyun’s blood-stained lips after that would’ve confused her even more. The action just didn’t fit. Seungwan would’ve looked at her like an actual monster. More of one than she currently felt herself.  
  


Persistent knocking on the door tapped gently against her mind’s invasion. Two single trails of sadness rolled down her temples and into her hair as she wiped the remainder of her misery with the back of her hand and got up to answer it.  
  


_How long has that been going on for?_  
  


She stopped right when she heard the hauntingly familiar scratching on heavy rosewood. There was one thing and one thing only that made that sound. She’d heard it far too often outside the bathroom door when she was in the shower for just the slightest bit too long, or coming from behind the door when she rustled around with the keys after going to the shops.  
  


A nervous hand limply turned the handle.  
  


_Surely not._  
  


But it surely was.  
  


The world had flipped the switch into slow-motion and Joohyun felt the biggest wave of relief crash into her. The rays of the evening sun framed the girl in the most delicate angelic light. Joohyun threw herself at her, wrapping worried arms around her so tightly. The way she wanted to embrace her that night.  
  


The girl’s eyes widened at the unusual action but hugged her back.  
  


Joohyun sobbed bitterly against her shoulder.  
  


“Oh Wannie, Wannie… I missed you so much… thank you for coming home.”  
  


She wanted to stay like this forever, but a small voice echoed at the back of her mind and eventually tugged her down from heaven.  
  


“Unnie… unnie, it’s me.”  
  


Joohyun pulled away slowly.  
  


The face was lovely; bright and full of genuine concern, but not the one she needed.  
  


“Seul.”  
  


“Unnie…” Seulgi hesitated, biting her lip as she dreaded her next words, “God, have you been eating? You're so thin! Please take care of yourself, too. You’re going to stay with the girls and I for a while, okay? I came to help you pack.”  
  


The other girl knew the task she’d set up for herself, and it wasn’t going to be an easy one. Sooyoung and Yerim had agreed to come down to stay at hers for a couple weeks while they stood by for their unnie.  
  


No, Joohyun would stay. This is where Seungwan was last, and wherever she may be now, the vampiress would hold on to the one place she’d left behind.  
  


Seulgi sighed as Joohyun shook her head and left. The girl followed, stepping into the living room to figure out how she’d get round this. But she froze mid-thought when the state of Joohyun’s living condition presented itself.  
  


Books scattered all over the floor, dirt stains smeared across various surfaces. Cups; too many to count, covering every table top in sight and starting to take up floor space. The place reeked of neglect and misery. And the food. What was all this food doing laying around? She’d never seen Joohyun eat anything of the sort. Most of it had clearly moulded over, and the rest was catching up. Seulgi scanned each dish: slabs of butter, mushy peas… roasted chicken, and… gosh was that chicken porridge? She couldn’t even tell what some of it was.  
  


This wasn’t the Joohyun she knew. It was a completely different person, and this person had given up.  
  


Eventually her eyes settled on the emaciated figure sprawled out on the sofa.  
  


“Unnie…” she nervously fidgeted at her sleeves, “You remind me of me. And I remind me of you.”  
  


The vampiress turned to face her, lightly raising an uninterested brow.  
  


“Yeah, you know…” Seulgi shifted a few books off the stool, settling down carefully next to Joohyun, “You saved me during finals. I was a mess, honestly. Hadn’t slept or showered in days.”  
  


She half-chuckled nervously at the memory. A weak smile lifted the corners of Joohyun’s lips at the sight of her bear’s reminiscing.  
  


“And this… it’s… it’s uncanny, really.”  
  


Joohyun felt warm fingers laced with her own.  
  


“Please, unnie. Please let us help you. Let me, help you.”  
  


…  
  


“Yerim-ah, Sooyoung-ah! We’re back! Come help me with unnie’s stuff!”  
  


Two girls came racing through the foyer to meet the two women at the door. Neither one voiced it but they'd have to ask Seulgi how she'd managed to get Joohyun out of her house. Lively but calculated chatter ensued, the three vampiresses trying their best to elevate the burden weighing down on Joohyun’s mind. Although they knew there was only one thing that could do that, it didn’t mean they wouldn’t try.  
  


The rest of the evening was a series of wasted attempts at happiness. Nothing they said or did sparked any sort of reaction deeper than a kind smile or a small acknowledging nod. Joohyun loved these girls like family, but there was nothing in her at this moment that could lift her from the quicksand. It was as much as the dejected vampiress could do not to hurl at the mere thought of blood bags. At dinner that night, everyone else had blood bags to go with their meal, but Joohyun had to excuse herself mid-way. She couldn’t stand the sight of blood.  
  


She spent the rest of the night in the living room, staring out into Seulgi’s vast garden. The girls in the dining room exchanged hushed, worried whispers, but continued nonetheless, allowing Joohyun the space she obviously needed.  
  


They’d all gathered in the living room after dinner.  
  


“Seungwannie was beautiful… but maybe it’s time to let go.”  
  


Those words hit Joohyun like a speeding truck. She wanted to jump up at them, wanted to scream at them to shut up, to curse and tell them they didn’t know what the hell they were talking about. But she just stared straight out the window, too focused on the deep green of the grass gently blown in the lovely evening breeze.  
  


Seulgi and Sooyoung shot apprehensive looks at Yerim, who pursed her lips, wishing she hadn’t just said what she said.  
  


Joohyun stood up, making the other three flinch at the sudden movement, running a hand over the exhaustion on her face. All eyes followed her out of the living room, and the next thing they heard was the dull thuds up the stairs.  
  


Left in an uncomfortable silence, Yerim shrugged at her unnies, tears already welling up in the corners of her eyes. She really didn’t mean to upset the eldest the way she had. Sooyoung was quick to reassure her, pressing her into her arms and kissing the top of her head as they both looked to Seulgi for answers. They had to do something. What they’d do was still unclear at this point, but it had to be something. The girl was inconsolable and it hurt them more than the vampiress would ever know.  
  


Joohyun cried herself to sleep again that night. And it would continue to happen, for as long as it took to come to terms with the fact that the thing she had grown to care about most in this disgusting, desolate world was gone. Yerim’s words replayed themselves over and over in her head. But she didn’t fight them. She knew they were right, after all.  
  


Perhaps Seungwan was better off alone, or in the care of someone who didn’t drain the life out of others to live.  
  


She closed her eyes.  
  


It was like the sky could cave in this very moment and Joohyun wouldn’t give it a second thought; she’d just rock herself to oblivion, curled up only in the comfort of her best memories.  
  


She just wanted to wallow in it.  
  


Her best memory; her Seungwan.


	10. vet.

Joohyun was sleeping another day away, unaware of the non-stop pacing and muffled discussion that was going on right beneath her.  
  


“No Yerim, that’s dumb.”  
  


Sooyoung waved the younger vampiress off mid-sentence, taking another thoughtful sip of crimson.  
  


“Ugh, fine then _you_ come up with something better!” Yerim huffed in frustration, “I’ve given you like five ideas!”  
  


All she got was an eye roll.  
  


“Yeah, but they all boil down to _’get Wannie back’,_ and we know that! That’s literally what we’re _trying to figure out!_ Duh! Oh my gosh, I love you b-”  
  


But Seulgi cut her off before she could proceed.  
  


“Guys stop, this isn’t helping,” she craned her neck and pinched her nose bridge with an exasperated thumb and forefinger, returning to the issue at hand, “we don’t know much about Wannie, only Joohyun unnie does.”  
  


“Yeah, and good luck getting her to talk about it,” the tallest scoffed, wrapping a consoling arm around the youngest, who just leaned into her shoulder and stared at the floor.  
  


“All she wants to do is sleep and think about Wannie.”  
  


“I don’t blame her, but at this rate, she’s getting dangerously close to needing in-patient care,” Seulgi thought out loud, shaking her head at the others, “I mean she’s been eating better since she’s been here, but I’m sure she’s just doing it for us. And that’s not enough.”  
  


They all knew she was right. Joohyun loved them, so she ate for them. But they needed her to do it for herself. And for Seungwan… they were sure the girl wouldn’t have wanted to see the vampiress waste away like this. In-patient treatment was laughable, quite frankly. With the history of vampires and their relatively uncomplicated lives, there wasn’t really any need for healthcare per se. They didn’t get sick like humans did, no ailments or disease, and definitely no heart complications. So any sort of medical intervention was simply wishful thinking.  
  


They wouldn’t know where to start with Joohyun’s broken heart.  
  


Yerim cocked an eyebrow at Seulgi’s despair, “Isn’t there a hospital for vampires? I mean there should be… humans have em and vets are a thing. It’s not fair, remember that time Joohyun rushed Wannie to the vet’s in the middle of the night just because she had a stomach ache? Just because we’re vampires doesn’t mean we can’t-”  
  


The noticeable shift in Seulgi’s eyes caused Yerim to flinch, choking back on the rest of her thought.  
  


She looked slightly mad.  
  


“Unnie?” Sooyoung squeezed the young girl a little tighter, equally as confused, “Um… you’re scaring us, what is it?”  
  


Seulgi had stopped listening to Yerim’s rambles at ‘vet’. She reached out and all but grabbed the girl by the shoulders, shaking her lightly and making her freeze up.  
  


“Kim Ye-rim, you bloody. Ge-ni-us, you. Oh, I could kiss you!”  
  


The girl just turned to look at Sooyoung, wondering what on earth she could’ve said the excited her Seulgi unnie so much. She was just about to open her mouth to ask, but Seulgi suddenly let go, throwing her hands above her head. She rounded the corner to rummage through the bowl of keys at the front door, leaving the two younger vampiresses gob-smacked.  
  


In less than a second, Seulgi was hurriedly ushering them out the door, ignorant to the slew of questions and protests.  
  


“Unnie, you wanna tell us what the heck is going on?” Sooyoung gasped out, putting her seatbelt on and already breathless from having to move so fast so early in the morning.  
  


Seulgi smiled widely at the two girls, a hopeful glint in her bright eyes.  
  


“We’re going to the vet.”  
  


“Joohyun unnie needs _in-patient_ care… what’s the vet gonna do to her.”  
  


 _Oh my god, Yerimie,_ Seulgi’s eyes rolled to the heavens as she pulled out the driveway with two slightly grumpy vampiresses in tow.  
  


…  
  


The timid girl at reception appeared rather flustered at the grand entrance the three vampiresses made, turning the heads of every person and animal sitting in the waiting room. They were well aware how ridiculous they looked; still in their pyjamas, fluffy house slippers and bed hair.  
  


Cardio wasn’t any of their strong points, and all three had already depleted a good 90% of their energy whooping with excitement and agreement in the car after Seulgi had explained why she was driving them there.  
  


“Joo-hyuh-hyun… Suh-Seungwan,” a panting Seulgi muttered to the receptionist, who was standing, pretty much pressed up into the glass to try to make sense of what she was hearing.  
  


“I’m sorry, could you please repeat th-?” she asked, pen at the ready.  
  


“She said Joohyun and Seungwan. Can we see your records on Seungwan, please,” Sooyoung interjected, not forgetting her manners despite her instincts screaming at her to just ransack the file cabinet herself.  
  


The girl behind the counter visibly hesitated before glancing back up at the three strange ladies on the other side of the glass. She began anxiously fiddling with the pen as she tried to explain their policies.   
  


“Um… I’m uh, I’m afraid we can’t disclose personal records to just anyone. Are you, perhaps friends or relatives?”  
  


“Yes we’re her friends, please, her hybrid is missing and she’s so sad she won’t eat anymore…”  
  


Yerim was babbling her feelings again, her voice a mixture of frustration and desperation at the fact that they weren’t getting anywhere. Seulgi shot her an apologetic look and took the upset girl in her arms, rubbing her back comfortingly. The receptionist stood, dumbfounded, patiently waiting for the rambling to die down.  
  


She did feel sorry at hearing this young girl pour her heart out like this, yet remained adamant.  
  


“Look, I’m really sorry to hear about your friend, but unfortunately out protocol doesn’t allow us to release any information without some sort of ident-”  
  


And that’s as far as she got.  
  


Sooyoung had had just about enough of this useless chit chat. With an angry grunt, she shoved the other two vampiresses out the way and leaned in so close the girl behind the glass found herself recoiling a little.  
  


“No, _you_ listen,” her steely tone left no room for negotiation, as she tactfully bared her fangs, making sure the girl got a good, long stare. She smirked when she saw the girl flinch and begin to shiver at the sight, impulsively flinging the pen into the air so it fell back down with an obnoxious clatter.  
  


“You’re going to give us that file, we’re going to have a nice little look at it, and then we’ll be on our way. Okay?”  
  


The discreet threat was enough to send the terrified girl into a frenzy. Shaky fingers adjusted spectacles which had slid down her nose in the haste of racking every file cabinet she laid hands on in search for what was suddenly the most important record she’d ever filed in her entire life.  
  


Sooyoung, utterly pleased with herself, turned to face Seulgi with the most triumphantly smug grin on her face. But frowned when the older vampiress gave her a ‘tell-me-you-didn’t-just-do-that’ look. Oh, because she used her fangs? Jeez, sometimes kindness made things move far too slowly. An annoyed Sooyoung mouthed a quick, ‘what? Worked didn’t it?’ before snapping back around to face a thin folder held through the small gap in the glass.  
  


“Thank you,” she said in an exaggerated show of politeness, promptly plucking it out of trembling fingers.  
  


Three pairs of eager eyes scanned the contents of the folder at a million miles a minute.  
  


They just needed those words.  
  


Sooyoung yelped and Seulgi jumped, holding a hand to the flat ringing in her ear where Yerim had just screamed into it.  
  


“I got it, I got it! Look, look!”  
  


It was as much as they could do to contain their rejoicing within themselves.  
  


Those two, undoubtedly, life-saving words.  
  


**_Hybrid microchip._ **   
  


…  
  


“Alright, you got the tracking number?”  
  


Seulgi briskly nodded, fumbling around with the app she’d just installed.  
  


Normal pet microchips weren’t paired with tracking devices, but it was very different when it came to hybrids. A special and much needed technology had been furthered successfully so hybrid owners could keep track of their pets’ whereabouts at all times to ensure their safety. A handful of unfortunate cases of hybrid kidnapping sparked the development of the tracking chips, and it had now become routine at every initial check-up for the veterinarian to inject the minuscule device just under the skin of the arm.  
  


“Wow, no offense but Joohyun unnie’s dumb as heck… she could’ve just tracked her instantly. She's gonna flip a brick when we tell her about this.”  
  


Seulgi and Sooyoung chuckled when they saw Yerim’s smiling eyes. The older vampiresses knew the situation ran far deeper than simply tracking Seungwan and forcing her to come home, but they said nothing, finding this newfound hope and happiness rather pleasant.  
  


“Okay,” Seulgi motioned for the other two, who immediately huddled around the bright LED screen, “moment of truth.”  
  


A steady click of the big green button sent a map with an aerial layout of their town.  
  


The three girls cocked perplexed heads and squinted at the confusing red pin plopped right at the edge.  
  


The opposite side of town.  
  


That was odd… and frankly starting to get a little worrying.  
  


Seulgi looked at Sooyoung, then at Yerim.  
  


They knew what they had to do.  
  


…  
  


Joohyun was jolted out of the nightmares she’d gotten used to falling victim to every night by soft but firm knocking.  
  


She cracked a heavy eye open as the door did.  
  


“Um, unnie…”


	11. freed.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> just in case you guys wanted to know what runs through my head when i think of puppy wannie. she has big puppy energy all the time but particularly in these lol. it's not fair.
> 
> sorry, this chapter is a doozy. it's also in many sections, so sorry if it's confusing. i kinda wanted to make it like an action movie. haha.
> 
> enjoy!

The room lapsed into a dreadful silence as Joohyun was transfixed by the red pin unsettlingly close to the outskirts of town. She could just about marry the three girls who’d taken it upon themselves to track her precious Seungwan down, but something about where that pin landed on the map caused an uncomfortable bubbling inside her. The way it was settled on the outskirts of town left a sour taste in her mouth.  
  


It just didn’t sit well.  
  


And right now she was wracking her brains as to _why._  
  


Yerim’s exhilaration had drowned into something of a muffled hum as the realisation kicked in. _That’s what that was._ It was an awful, seedy part of town. Notorious for its unexplained disappearances and pertaining to several of the more recent hybrid kidnappings. It was so untraceable that the authorities were never able to find leads of any kind.  
  


“What’s the time stamp on this?”  
  


Joohyun’s sharp question sliced through the beginnings of happiness. Yerim looked up at her as Seulgi prodded the screen in search. Joohyun anxiously scrunched the thin material of her trousers at the knee, as it began to bob up and down impatiently, making Seulgi focus even harder.  
  


“Uh… it was recorded about 10 minutes ago… why?”  
  


Thank god. There was still time. She still had a chance.  
  


 _Oh god no,_ she cursed, shooting up off the bed and pulling a jumper over her thin pyjama top, _I’m not letting that happen._  
  


Cupping each girl by the face, the oldest vampiress leaned down and planted a firm, thankful kiss on all three heads. She’d make it up to them later, but right now, Seungwan was in a danger graver than anyone but Joohyun understood. She was out the door before any one of the flushed, pink-cheeked vampiresses could open their mouths to ask.  
  


“Seulgi! Sooyoung! Yerim-ah!”  
  


They came running to the landing, leaning over the railing to see an obviously frazzled Joohyun already halfway out the door.  
  


“Help unnie, okay? Go home and tidy up for me?”  
  


The vampiress hid her fear under the fragile mask of optimism.  
  


“Seungwannie’s coming home today.”  
  


She shot them a quick wink before disappearing behind the doors.  
  


Joohyun tore down the street, maxing out her vampire speed with Seulgi’s phone tightly clutched in her uncharacteristically sweaty palm. She still had a long way to go, both distance and health wise, but the reminder of what lay at the end of the road if she was to be a mere second too late spurred her on.  
  


So she ran.  
  


The closer she got, the angrier she got. Pure, unfiltered rage brewed at her core when the image of the map and pin flickered through her mind. That ghastly area she recognised sickened her to her stomach.  
  


Werewolves.  
  


Not normal ones, at that, the werewolves from this part of town were particularly nasty.  
  


And Joohyun would be damned if she just stood by and let them so much as glance at Seungwan the wrong way.  
  


_Sit tight, Wannie, mummy’s coming._   
  


… ...  
  


Back at Seulgi’s, things were moving swiftly. Bags were being packed as the three girls hurried to comply with their unnie’s wishes.  
  


Seulgi glanced at Sooyoung from the rear view mirror as she sped them down the road to Joohyun’s house.  
  


“You and Yerim tidy up. And give me your phone. I’m gonna follow Joohyun unnie.”  
  


“Huh? Why?” Yerim turned to face Seulgi, who was gripping the steering wheel unbelievably tightly.  
  


The vampiress in question stole a couple of quick glances to the girl in the passenger’s seat.  
  


“You know; in case she needs help. She may be angry, but she’s still tired. I don’t know what’s down there but it can’t be good.”  
  


“We’ll be fine, don’t worry unnie. We’ll be waiting for you guys to come home.”  
  


Sooyoung responded with an understanding nod, and that was that.  
  


… ...  
  


To say Seungwan missed Joohyun would be a severe understatement. Yes, she’d been scared, but it was much scarier being out in the streets alone. Enough time had passed since, and she’d be lying to herself if she said she didn’t want to be cuddled up in Joohyun’s arms. Thoughts of doing everything and nothing with her mummy brought tears to her eyes every time. That night had shaken her badly, and that fit of instability landed her in the town-centre, not even knowing what she was roaming aimlessly in search of. Regret was something the young girl didn’t have time to linger on. As empty as she felt without the love she’d grown so fond of, her survival instincts kicked in.  
  


The lost girl wordlessly pressed on.  
  


Food, water and shelter.  
  


She rocked herself to sleep wherever she was imagining Joohyun cuddling her from behind, kissing her cold, lonely ears goodnight. More than anything, Seungwan wanted to go home. Not to the way she was before, but _home._ Where Joohyun was, and where she was happy. But she couldn’t. She was hopelessly lost, disorientated by the lights and reflections of the vast town-centre, the crowds of people who just passed her by day after day, unsympathetic and unfriendly.  
  


She’d ventured too far from home to be able pick up any scent to guide her back.  
  


The first few nights were the hardest. Food was scarce, which went without saying. Whatever food scraps she was offered came from random restaurants or shops after closing time, which she accepted gratefully. She’d scarf it down; the scraps had usually gone cold by the time they reached her malnourished lips, but it tasted heaven-sent. Often, she’d try to sneak in to sleep in the dying warmth of the establishment, but the owners wouldn’t hesitate to shoo her away, reminding her how lucky she was they’d given her food to begin with.  
  


Most places she visited had a zero tolerance for pets of any kind; and they were especially unforgiving when it came to stray, un-collared hybrids.  
  


So hard park benches served as her uncomfortable mattress a few nights in a row. But that was before she coincidentally sniffed out solace in a surprisingly comfy hollowed out tree trunk.  
  


It was as perfect as it could get.  
  


Perfect, until she met him.  
  


It shouldn’t have happened, really. He was just a passing stranger, nice enough to stop and crouch right by her little tree trunk, offering a helping hand.  
  


“Why are you sleeping here, little one?”  
  


His voice was deep and mellow, pleasant on the ears.  
  


Seungwan just shrugged, cautiously glancing up at the smiling face; he looked like any other person. Stranger danger was persistently nudging at her instincts, but something about those superficially kind eyes lulled her into an odd sense of security; as if he had everything and nothing she was looking for. He smelt rather funny, but she couldn’t quite put it to words. She wasn’t wholly at ease with the idea of potentially wandering further away from wherever Joohyun was, but at the mere promise of a warm bed and meal, she found herself hand in hand with this stranger, as he led them away from the park.  
  


Perhaps he’d be so kind as to help her find her way home.  
  


… ...  
  


Joohyun almost sped right past the park. But the faintest scent of her Seungwan and a godawful stench of werewolf clawed its way up her sensitive nose. She snapped her attention for a second, her heightened vision honing in on a small hole at the base of a tree trunk. There was no time to stop and investigate, though, Seungwannie neeed her.  
  


The overwhelming smell of deceit told her that quite clearly.  
  


The vengeful vampiress inwardly cringed at the thought. Seungwan was way too innocent and trusting. A couple of ear scratches and praise and she was putty in seconds, didn’t _she_ know. And what more, in her pitiful, desperate state? She'd fall prey to anyone's evil scheme. Joohyun sure as hell didn’t want Seungwan putty in anyone’s hands but hers.  
  


She narrowed icy grey eyes as her lip quivered in rage.  
  


_If they’ve hurt her…_   
  


… ...  
  


The house was fairly ordinary, nothing too special at all. It was cottage-like, with scratched brown wooden walls and interior décor of a similarly neutral shade. The dishes on the counter were all mismatched primary colours and Seungwan caught a brief glimpse of what looked to be a large, antique table in one of the spare rooms.  
  


A firm grip on her shoulder startled her before she could peer any further.  
  


“Uh uh,” he tutted, shaking his head down at her, “You don’t go in there. You hear me, little girl?”  
  


Everything was just very random; not in a particularly bad way, but it was certainly a stark contrast to the only other home she’d ever been in. It wasn’t run down by any means, but there were clear signs of having been lived in.  
  


Again, that weird smell.  
  


What was it?  
  


Poor tired, hungry little Seungwan hadn’t a clue.  
  


All she knew was that her hunger was going to soon be satiated. It felt like ages since she’d felt this relaxed, eyes already beginning to form happy little crescent moons. The man had his back turned to her, preparing a small meal while she sat at the homely kitchen table, swaying excited legs back and forth in wait.  
  


Her tail swished unconsciously when he turned around.  
  


“Here,” the man nodded, setting a small plate with a toasted ham sandwich on it before a set of eager eyes, “Eat up, little one.”  
  


She didn’t need to be told twice.  
  


“Thank you,” she glanced up at him with appreciation, tucking into her first warm meal in days.  
  


The man watched her stuff her cheeks for a while, then excused himself. He gave her a firm pat, flattening her twitching ears against her head and tugging at them lightly before ducking round the corner.  
  


“I’m just going upstairs to get your blanket ready.”  
  


… ...  
  


“Oh god, the _smell_ …”  
  


Yerim scrunched her eyes up and fanned her nose in disgust.  
  


The reek smacked them right across the face as soon as they opened the doors of the once pristine mansion.  
  


This was certainly _not_ normal.  
  


“Joohyun unnie really hit rock bottom, huh,” Sooyoung joked half-heartedly, poking a playful elbow at the younger girl, but looking equally as devastated at the challenge awaiting them in the rest of the house.  
  


Mindful not to tread on anything that could be of value (because let’s face it, with the mess it was almost impossible to distinguish what was and wasn’t), the clean-up duo scoured the room for anything that _didn’t_ have to be either chucked straight in the rubbish chute or thoroughly deep cleaned.  
  


What a surprise, there wasn’t.  
  


“Well,” Sooyoung shrugged, slowly turning to face a horrified Yerim, who was holding up a bowl of slush and hopelessly cringing at her, “Let’s get to work, I guess.”  
  


“Yeah,” Yerim concurred, tossing her friend an unopened packet of gloves, “Get this over and done with.”  
  


… ...  
  


The sun was already beginning to set, and Seungwan was getting sleepy. Not having had a proper sleep in a few nights now, she couldn’t wait to snuggle into an actual bed this time. She shivered at the thought of another night spent in that tree.  
  


Wiping the crumbs off her lips, the girl placed her dish carefully in the sink before dusting her hands off and heading out the kitchen.  
  


Time to do a bit of exploring before bed, she decided.  
  


Joohyun had always worried that Seungwan’s puppy curiosity would land her in a sticky situation, and the one time it was about to, she wasn’t there to protect her.  
  


The girl just couldn’t help herself, she _had_ to find out what lay in that spare room. A whole bag of treats, maybe? There had to be a reason she wasn’t allowed in there. There was definitely a reason she wasn’t allowed in there… for the time being. But it wasn’t anywhere nearly as enticing as the promise of an entire treat stash hidden away for later. She was about to find out where that weird smell had been coming from, too.  
  


For the most part, the room seemed normal. The table situated in the middle of it was a rather strange use of the space, but it was fine. A few audible sniffs at the air led the girl right to the corner of the room. She knew she really shouldn’t be doing this, but quivering hands undid the huge black bags lying behind the door anyway.  
  


God, it was horrifying.  
  


She reeled back in shock when she realised what she’d just uncovered.  
  


Rotting remains of small animal carcasses, some decomposing flesh, but mostly bones picked clean. Just… bundled up like that.  
  


Trying her best not to dry heave, she got up to leave.  
  


But a low, disapproving hum made her stop in her tracks.  
  


Seungwan gasped, spinning round to come face to face with the man who’d taken her in.  
  


Except this time, he didn’t seem so friendly.  
  


His eyes; the kindness had been drained from them, replaced by a sinking darkness.  
  


“Oh my,” he sighed, the way he folded his arms so meticulously made the girl swallow nervously, “Bad girl can’t follow simple instructions?”  
  


Sharp clicks of approaching footsteps echoed from the hallway, causing her eyes to dart in the direction of the sound. Not two seconds later, a tall, domineering woman Seungwan definitely did _not_ recall seeing upon entry rounded the corner behind him. She had this psychotic grin plastered to her face as she stared right into Seungwan’s shaking eyes.  
  


“Looks like we’re doing this now,” the man said matter-of-factly, turning to face the woman, who looked like she’d been starved for half a century.  
  


“Call the others. It’s time to feast.”  
  


_F-feast?_   
  


The woman lowered her gaze to the petrified girl who stood, frozen to the spot, not daring to move a muscle. Seungwan saw several shadows belonging to even scarier men materialise behind the woman with a simple click of her fingers.  
  


_Werewolves…_   
  


They all filed into the room and began circling her, caging her in.  
  


The disgusting odour of murder suffocated Seungwan as everyone in the room scanned her up and down with their hungry, predatory stares. Some were even starting to lick their lips, snarling at the way she smelt and cooing mockingly at her fearful little whimpers.  
  


Seungwan’s fight or flight instinct kicked in and she tried to bolt, ducking under and in between one of the male’s legs. But she was easily caught.  
  


“Where do you think you’re going, cute little thing,” he sneered hoarsely.  
  


He grabbed her by the back of her jumper, roughly hauling her back into the circle. She cried out in pain when she felt calloused hands get unbreakable grips on each of her limbs as she was carried over to the middle of the room.  
  


“No!” Seungwan yelled, thrashing violently in their grip, trying to kick her legs out.  
  


But it was no use. They were too ridiculously strong.  
  


Before she knew it, they had her helplessly pinned on the table.  
  


The poor girl almost fainted with terror when the man and woman sauntered over to where her head was.  
  


“You smell _so good_ , little one,” the corners of his mouth curled up in the most menacing grin she’d ever seen, “And I bet you taste _even_ better. It's been so long since we ate a hybrid this cute.”  
  


“E-eat me?!” she squeaked in fear, looking up at her murderers with wide, watery eyes, “P-please don’t eat Wah-Wannie!”  
  


But they were ignorant to her tearful pleas. The woman suddenly seized Seungwan by the throat, holding her in place, causing the girl to choke and splutter. She flinched and screwed her eyes shut when the man leaned in and took a long whiff of her chocolate ears flicking in terror, deflating against her head.  
  


A broken yelp of shock and pain was torn from poor Seungwan yet again when he took one of her soft, velvet ears in between his sharp canines and bit down; hard. Searing rivers of tears ran down her face and pooled into her hair as she felt him draw blood. The man hummed against the warm, bleeding ear and licked over the fresh wound, smirking at the pitiful cries his actions were eliciting.  
  


The girl jerked when she felt anonymous incisors tightening around her limp tail, threatening to bite it right off.  
  


But a deafening slam at the entrance quickly put a stop to whatever was about to happen.  
  


Two figures were standing by the door, with equally menacing looks on their faces. Seungwan was dangerously on the verge of unconsciousness, but just managed to make out one of the faces; the most important one.  
  


And she was bloody angry.  
  


“Mmm…” Seungwan tried, locking eyes with a shocked and furious Joohyun.  
  


But the strain was too much, and she mercifully passed out before she could say it.  
  


That did it.  
  


Joohyun’s eyes blazed a blood-hungry red. She was twice as vehement at the sight of Seungwan’s wounds and now that she’d blacked out, there was really no stopping this fuming, murderous vampiress. She was on the warpath, and she was unstoppable. They would be no pause until she had spilled the filthy guts of every single revolting werewolf in this room.  
  


“Hey,” one of the males, angry at the interruption, stormed threateningly over to her, teeth gleaming and bared, “Get lost unless you wa-”  
  


And that’s as far as he got with that cute little sentiment.  
  


The rest of the pack could only watch in horror as their member clutched at his spurting throat, falling to his knees before the vampiress.  
  


Joohyun narrowed her eyes at the two leaders. No one was allowed to so much as lay a finger slightly too heavily on her Wannie if they valued their lives. If they wanted to see the light of another day.  
  


_If you want to live, you…_   
  


“Don’t. Fucking. Touch her.”


	12. recovering.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> sorry, now i know how to add pics, i can't stop. freakin crescent moon eye smile.
> 
> also, i don't say this enough but please forgive any english errors, of which i'm sure there are many. but yeah, hope you enjoy!

Rows and rows of blinding white sparked at her uneasy vision.  
  


It gave her a blistering headache.  
  


The chatter didn’t register in dull ears. It was medical jargon, but she didn’t know. Everything seemed so distant; it was as though she was listening from behind a fish tank. Her muscles refused to comply with the distressed signals her brain was jamming; like every nerve ending in her had been severed, each new signal shoving the previous one off the edge to nowhere. There was an acidic heat crawling up the veins in her forearm. A wave of numb tingles prickled on various parts of her body but never lingered any longer than a fraction of a second.  
  


An unpromising hum before a definite answer.  
  


“Can’t be saved.”  
  


A man’s voice. It was rough like sandpaper, and it scraped unforgivingly at her cotton-wool mind. She tried to cry out, but nothing came of it. She was losing her grip, sinking further and further under until the weight on her chest grew too heavy.  
  


She felt a single head spin and then nothing.  
  


… …  
  


“Sooyoung! Yerim!”  
  


A wrought Seulgi limped through the doors screaming for the younger girls, doing her best not to buckle under Joohyun’s very nearly dead-weight.  
  


Two worried girls took the weight off Seulgi’s shoulders, hooking each of Joohyun’s arms around their necks as they carried her upstairs to get her cleaned up. Seulgi collapsed into the sofa downstairs.  
  


“Okay, you grab the legs,” Sooyoung instructed, having tended to the vampiresses’ minor wounds and focusing on getting her in bed.  
  


With a well-coordinated heave, Joohyun was now comfortably tucked into bed where she’d spend the next few days in the deepest, deadest slumber. The three would periodically check on her, taking it in turns as they kept the house going; washing her healing wounds, keeping her company and the place occupied while she was alone.  
  


Contrary to their current physical conditions, both vampiresses had reigned victorious. And relatively unscathed, at that; which was extremely uncommon when it came to the wars between vampires and werewolves.  
  


Only two women remained upright by the end of it, standing in a sea of due justice. The crimson slathered on the walls of that room signified the beginning of a new peace; one less threat, no more monsters. Their hearts broke for all the others before Seungwan. Those who no one came for.  
  


It was a massive victory, but an even bigger energy sap.  
  


Especially for Joohyun, in her weakened state. It was incredibly dangerous, pushing limits she hadn’t realised were there for the first time, overriding her system the way she did when she ripped the unworthy hearts from each worthless abomination. But every last fibre of her being that day, she had ignited and torn out of herself in the name of protecting Seungwan; the only way it should and would ever be.  
  


She spoke not once during the lengthy healing process. Her chest barely rose and fell with how still her breathing had become. It was as though she’d never wake up.  
  


She eventually did, though.  
  


It was during Yerim’s turn, and the girl instantly halted her wound care when she felt a finger twitch in her gentle grasp.  
  


Not quite believing she’d just felt that, she trailed her gaze up. And sure enough, she was met with two eyes watching her softly, half-lidded and brimming with gratefulness.  
  


“Uh-unnie…” Yerim voice cracked hoarsely, a teary smile forming on trembling lips as she ever so gingerly embraced her, “You’re awake. I missed you.”  
  


Joohyun couldn’t reply, but mustered the strength she needed to curl an arm over the girl’s back, fingers twitching against it in an attempt to soothe her. She was overjoyed to see the other two girls not much later, after an excited Yerim had dashed out to call them upstairs.  
  


The weakest trace of a smile momentarily brushed the fatigue away as she soaked in the company of her closest friends.  
  


_Thank you for taking care of me and Seungwannie._  
  


Seulgi, Sooyoung and Yerim read the thanks in her eyes perfectly without having to hear a single spoken word. It was a lovely bond they shared. But the spirits dampened a little when Joohyun noticed Seulgi’s lips flatten into a straight line. Something had happened, but what?  
  


The latter exhaled precariously, her expression a clear giveaway she was trying her hardest to work out how she was going to say what she was about to. Sooyoung put an arm over Yerim’s shoulder. It seemed like Joohyun had been last to be filled in.  
  


An unexplainable unease surged at her.  
  


Joohyun felt a dip in the mattress beside her as Seulgi sat down, threading her warm fingers through her limp ones. As much as she didn’t want to upset her unnie, she knew Joohyun would want to know.  
  


The vampiress did her best impression of a scowl.  
  


“So about Wannie…”  
  


… …  
  


Joohyun stirred, feeling a small rustle beside her. It was like muscle memory; as if on cue, the vampiress turned herself onto her side and only too naturally wrapped an arm around it, not having to so much as crack an eye open. The bundle responded by curling deeper into her front.  
  


_What? When did Seungwannie get home? How many days has it been... oh gosh..._  
  


This was no time for pointless questions.  
  


_Seungwannie, Wannie, puppy…_  
  


She let the names write themselves over and over again in her head. She’d waited too damn long for this moment and she was determined to bask in it for as long as she pleased.  
  


But wait, wasn’t Seulgi just saying…  
  


This couldn’t be, right?  
  


Joohyun’s eyes shot open, praying to god this wasn’t the second time she’d hallucinated her happiness; made herself see the one person she desperately craved, made the time pass faster than it actually was. She’d stay afloat, only to drown at the realisation that everything she’d conjured before was just a defense mechanism to cope with the devastation.  
  


_God, please don’t be one of those times… please… let her be real, let her be here… I won’t be-_  
  


Her prayers were heard before she finished them.  
  


A brief warmth spread over her chest.  
  


A breath.  
  


Oh it was so brief, but so beautiful. It was perfectly full of life. Just like she’d wanted.  
  


Her puppy was alive, and she finally had her in her arms again.  
  


“Seungwannie,” Joohyun didn’t dare raise her voice any louder than a whisper for fear of waking the girl.  
  


It wasn’t her intention; she just needed to say it out loud. To feel that name roll off her lips like she was the only one meant to say it. It was an odd jealousy she would never disclose.  
  


Joohyun blinked the remnants of sleep from her fuzzy vision as it settled on the pair of coffee-coloured ears flopped over one another from under the duvet. The vampiress’ mind swam with how much this felt like a distant dream, almost as though she hadn’t quite acknowledged this was real yet.  
  


Oh she could cry.  
  


The thought of spilling her feelings again didn’t faze her in the slightest.  
  


At least the tears would taste of happiness.  
  


But then she saw it, and it just grounded her once more.  
  


The visible raised streak of broken flesh parting the soft fur of a floppy, triangular ear. It was an atrocity; a ghastly taint on her dreadful innocence and an ugly jolt to reality. It was, in Joohyun's punishing mind, a gruesome reminder of her shortcomings as a mother and protector. She brought her hand up, delicately tracing a quivering finger over the fresh scar on Seungwan’s right ear.  
  


“Oh, baby…”  
  


Her breath stuttered, a single tear rolling down her temple and soaking into the pillowcase as she stroked the scar between her fingers. Ever so delicately, handling it as if it possessed the fragility tenfold that of the finest glass; one wrong move and it would shatter beyond all hope of repair.  
  


“Mummy’s so sorry…”  
  


Little Seungwan remained blissfully unaware of the hurricane of emotions tearing through her mummy as she snored lightly against her collarbone. Feeling her puppy so relaxed as she reeled in conflict flipped a switch in her; Seungwan was alright so she should be too.  
  


She shifted on the pillow, leaning in to pepper feathery kisses all over the afflicted ear. She was kissing the sadness away. The pain; their pain.  
  


Seungwan must’ve felt it, because with one big ear flick, she was awake.  
  


Seemingly oblivious to any of her injuries.  
  


And beaming up at Joohyun with those endearing sleepy crescent moon eyes and puffy cheeks, rosy and flushed from the warmth of the duck down duvet and her mummy’s love.  
  


Joohyun was so over a thousand moons she found herself almost at a loss for words.  
  


“Baby? Wannie? You’re awake?”  
  


The girl let her face be cupped by disbelieving, cold hands turning warm the moment they touched her.  
  


“…missedyoumummy…”  
  


Joohyun was on cloud nine. Seungwan would never know how much her little voice churned at the rusty gears of her dead soul. And the fact that it was currently the groggiest it could get, thick with sleep, made it all the better. There was simply no way on earth she’d tire of hearing it.  
  


“I missed you too, Wannie,” Joohyun rasped, feeling the tears threatening to cascade already, planting a trembling kiss on her forehead, “More than you know.”  
  


Seungwan shifted uncomfortably, causing the vampiress to glance down in concern.  
  


“What is it, baby?”  
  


A small pause.  
  


“Wannie… made mummy hurt…”  
  


The sentiment clawed at Joohyun. She wasn’t sure if the girl meant she’d angered or saddened her. The truth was she’d been both, though only at those monsters for daring to lay a hand on what was hers. It made her seethe. But she decided against dwelling on the subject any further. What mattered right now was cuddled up in bed with her; safe. Everything else could wait.  
  


Seungwan mattered so much.  
  


“No, baby,” she let her thumbs glide over anxious cheeks, watching them visibly relax under the touch, “Mummy’s so glad you’re safe now.”  
  


_Can this last forever, please? Is that too much to ask._  
  


It evidently was, as the lovely moment was rudely cut short by two exasperated vampiresses appearing at the doorway, huffing and puffing, clutching themselves in frustration.  
  


“Naughty!” Sooyoung pointed at Seungwan, who went stiff, knowing she’d been caught.  
  


“Naughty puppy, you need to follow doctor’s orders… or… or else…” she proceeded to half-heatedly scold the puppy, trailing off at the sight of Seungwan, who did such a splendid job at acting remorseful that she couldn’t bring herself to keep it up.  
  


The tallest vampiress threw her hands up in defeat, much to the amusement of everyone in the room.  
  


“It’s not fair, unnie. Wannie can’t just get away with everything just cos she’s freaking adorable!”  
  


Joohyun grinned, knowing full well she could. No one could tell her that, though. There was absolutely no bloody way they would ever let on. The world would be as good as assimilated; doomed, if Seungwannie knew just how powerful she was.  
  


“Aish!” Yerim arrived last, kneeing the door shut, bottle of antibiotic lotion still in her hand, “Unnie, she’s too wriggly. Ran off right in the middle of cleaning her ear.”  
  


“Stings!” Seungwan pouted, trying to escape by burying her face into the crook of Joohyun’s neck and prompting a chuckle from the vampiress.  
  


“Yah,” she playfully chided, “Stop telling her off, guys.”  
  


The girl craned her neck around to stick a pink tongue out at the three vampiresses who were now stood by the bedside. Her smugness dulled significantly when she met Joohyun’s stern gaze, however.  
  


“Come, baby, you have to,” Joohyun gently pried the reluctant girl from her neck and guiding Seungwan’s wrist so they were cuddling each other.  
  


“Be a good girl for mummy?”  
  


The girl grumbled softly but complied anyway. Since mummy asked so very nicely. She rolled onto her back, offering her sensitive ear to medical attention. Joohyun felt her pyjama top balled up in a tight fist, reaching under the covers to pat the back of Seungwan’s hand as the girl prepared herself for the pain.  
  


But it stung much less in Joohyun’s hold.  
  


… …  
  


Seulgi yelped in surprise when she felt insistent smacks on her arm. Joohyun was out of bed, leaving a giggling Seungwan wrapped in the duvet observing her mummy whacking the life out of poor Seulgi.  
  


“Yah! Why did you make it sound so bad when you told me! You had me so worried!”  
  


The younger vampiress scooted backwards, holding the other arm out in defense, but Joohyun just followed, demanding an answer.  
  


“Okay, okay!”  
  


The oldest eventually relented, waiting for the girl to speak, but warning with her eyes that it wasn’t over yet.  
  


“I-I’m sorry, I just thought it was really bad… I mean the doctors! It was their fault, I thought they were going to cut the whole thing off!”  
  


Joohyun cocked her brow in legitimate confusion.  
  


_Cut **what** off?_  
  


“W-what? Kang Seulgi, what were the doctors going to ‘cut off’?”  
  


Seulgi sighed, beckoning to the girl on the bed, whose ears pricked up at the sound of her name.  
  


“Come here, Wannie-ah. Show mummy your tail.”  
  


The girl obediently bounded over, sitting herself down in Seulgi’s lap. The vampiress dipped into the treat bag Joohyun kept under the table and pulled out a biscuit, handing the tasty distraction to an eager Seungwan. Soft, satisfied grunts escaped the girl as Seulgi reached down to carefully untuck the fluffy appendage from under her. Seungwan’s eyes popped at the fingers around it, but she let her bandaged tail be held.  
  


New concern rapidly ate away at the apprehension on Joohyun’s face when she saw tufts of Seungwan’s tail poking out from between the wrap. It was missing it's tip, now blunt and presumably shaved under the bandage.  
  


“Yeah,” Seulgi frowned, nodding unfortunately, “They couldn’t save it all. They had to amputate at the first joint. B-but she still has most of it with her… it-it’s just that little bit, don’t worry.”  
  


_Those bastards deserve everything they get in Hell._  
  


"It must've gotten infected from that werewolf bite... and I can't say for sure, but I think one of them might've stepped on it, too."  
  


Joohyun was brimming.  
  


“But when she’s out, she’ll have the cutest little kink in it…?” Sooyoung offered nervously, trying to console Joohyun and subsequently snapping the eldest out of her murderous, hellish thought train.  
  


Joohyun felt the anger fizzle when she reminded herself that everyone was safe and sound now, and that was the most important thing. She dropped the feeling and smiled at Sooyoung, patting her arm.  
  


“It doesn’t hurt too bad, does it, Wannie? You’re okay, are you?”  
  


Seungwan didn’t seem to care one bit, only too happy at the constant flow of biscuits she was receiving in turn for inspecting the damage. She nodded vigorously, ears happily flicking against Seulgi's lips, hoping that would earn her another treat. Which, of course, it did, along with a string of laughter from the four vampiresses in the room.  
  


For Seungwan, life didn’t get any better than it was right this very second. Having been reunited with Joohyun was everything she’d ever prayed for since straying from home, and now she was back.  
  


Back, and endlessly showered in kisses and affection from her four favourite vampires.


	13. dreams.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> just drabble at this point. thank you for keeping up with my weird stuff. (:

It was a wonder in itself how Seungwan managed to fit all that food into that tiny body of hers.  
  


All four vampiresses were gathered round the breakfast table practically gawping at the puppy, who was chowing down on her fifth buttered croissant in half the time it took for Yerim to finish a blood bag. And Yerim was a _fast_ drinker. It was a sight to behold; the girl was almost crossed-eyed with concentration, and her ears were flattened in amongst locks of golden-brown for what could only be assumed was optimal chewing.  
  


God help the wretched soul who ever got in the way of Seungwan and the food on her plate.  
  


Sooyoung was the first to break, a few high-pitched giggles escaping her amused lips. She flinched when Yerim reacted faster than lightning, immediately clamping a hand over her mouth to stifle her laughter. Everyone was determined to let poor Seungwan stuff her face in peace.  
  


“Ya, Wannie-ah,” Joohyun snorted as she held Seungwan’s wrists down with one hand, “Eat slowly. Didn’t the doctors feed you enough?”  
  


Seungwan, who was slightly annoyed at the break in her concentration, looked up at Joohyun and plainly shook her head. Of course they didn’t feed her enough! She wanted home cooked meals, not horribly manufactured mush with a side of IV fluids. Seungwan furrowed her brows at Joohyun as if to say ‘tsk, tsk, mummy, I can’t believe you didn’t realise’.  
  


…  
  


Both Sooyoung and Yerim had convinced Joohyun to let them all stay together for a while, just till things were surely settled down and everyone was properly healed up. Joohyun wondered if this was their way of begging her to let them play with Seungwan just that little bit more. Not that she minded it one bit though. Along with Seungwan, she’d blossomed in ways she’d never anticipated, and found out she’d grown to enjoy the company of her fated family more than casual weekly visits.  
  


“Unnie, can you get me some water?”  
  
Okay, maybe she'd spoken too soon.  
  


“Yah, Sooyoung-ah, you should be getting _me_ water. I’m your unnie, in case you’ve forgotten.”  
  


Joohyun grumbled but still found herself pausing the movie and heading for the kitchen.  
  


“Um I know that, that’s why I said _‘unnie’,_ duh!”  
  


Joohyun shook her head, rolling her eyes fondly at Sooyoung’s distant giggles and the sarcastically drawn out ‘thank you unnieeee’.   
  


_Aish, that kid,_ she chuckled, _one day I’m gonna make her cook me a five course meal if it’s the last thing I do. Seriously, where’s the respect? Can’t get any around here… even in my own house._  
  


But she knew she’d have it no other way. She flipped the tap off and snagged a small dino butter biscuit from the biscuit tin on the counter. And yet again, Seungwan gets a treat for merely existing. As it should be, no?  
  


“Oh no! Sorry Wannie, I-!”  
  


Joohyun cursed herself for being so careless, bringing Sooyoung’s glass of water and only now realising she’d caught Seungwan’s tail under her foot. Seungwan was busy building blocks with Yerim, her over-excited hands continually knocking any progress they made on project ‘Tallest Tower in the World’ back down to a whopping zero.  
  


“No! Ugh, Wannie-ah…” Yerim grumbled through the ice lolly in her mouth, using her own arm to keep the bouncy ball of energy at bay while she stacked a few blocks herself, “You have to be _patient_ if you want this to be tall. Wait… okay? You can smash it down later.”  
  


Seulgi laughed.  
  


“You’ll never make it.”  
  


Handing the glass to Sooyoung, Joohyun sat next to her, debating her next move.  
  


Ever so cautiously, she stretched a hand down to the little tail laying calmly at her feet, fluffy and bent at the top. She grazed the tip with her fingers, but to her expectation and disappointment, Seungwan didn’t so much as twitch. Any sort of pressure on her tail would cause the girl to instinctively flick it away. And the vampiress knew this better than anyone, considering the number of times she’d been shot daggers at for being that slightest bit too playful in fiddling around with it.  
  


The feeling was much different now, though. It squeezed rather uncomfortably at Joohyun even all this time later. Sooyoung was right, and the vampiress sadly thumbed at the permanent kink at the end of Seungwan’s tail. The nerve damage was forever, and it was something Seungwan would just have to get used to. Although by the looks of things she’d passed that checkpoint with flying colours. It was unfair how an act so unspeakably heinous could produce something so cute. Joohyun made a quick mental note to teach Seungwan to be mindful of where she rested it from now on.  
  


She exchanged a dejected frown with a sympathetic Seulgi.  
  


 _At least the fur is almost fully grown back,_ she sighed.  
  


Joohyun shoved the puppy treat into Yerim's hands with a knowing nod, smiling as the young vampiress mouthed a big 'thank you' before waving it in front of Seungwan, who was grabbing at it.  
  


"Uh, uh!" she tutted, holding it just out of reach, "Only good girls get dino biscuits. And good girls wait until the _whole_ tower is built, don't they?"  
  


She couldn't help but laugh at the way Seungwan's eyes bulged, vigorously promising the greatest treasures of the earth in exchange for the baked good Yerim had in her hand.  
  


"Alright, but you promised. Now sit still," she said, handing it over.  
  


The older vampiresses melted as they watched Seungwan's ears flick in delight, emitting happy crunches.  
  


The other three continued where they’d left off, leaving Yerim huffing in frustration at her groundwork still constantly being demolished by bulldozer Seungwan.  
  


… …  
  


For once, Joohyun didn’t have to spend hours calling Seungwan from downstairs to get her butt into the bathroom to wash up for the night. Yerim and Sooyoung had done a splendid job at tuckering her out with all that playtime this afternoon that bedtime was a breeze through the park.  
  


 _Hmm,_ the vampiress amused herself with her thought, _perhaps those two are good for something other than annoying the crap out of me and eating all the food in my fridge._  
  


Joohyun fluttered off in minutes, arm draped over her precious little bundle.

_~_   
  


_He was unlike anything she’d ever seen. His jaw was agape, and bigger than her head. And they were close enough she could feel his breath; rotting and the permanent stench of decomposing flesh. Her world darkened as he neared, looming above her as she trembled under his claw, fearful squeaks leaving her as her heart threatened to give out. The surface area of his palm was massive, encompassing her tiny mid-section as she squirmed, unsuccessfully trying to twist out of her doom. He cackled, deep and throaty; it was hopelessly easy to hold the writhing little thing down, and he was cruelly tormenting her before the kill. She didn’t even see it coming. In one swift motion –_

_~_   
  


Joohyun was up. Being ever the light sleeper, it was safe to say she somewhat slept with one eye open every night now, especially since Seungwan’s return. The insistent rustling in her arms roused her almost immediately but an unusual kick from the girl in her embrace was enough to tell her something was afoot. Already used to the dark, she shot upright, turning to observe the kicking, squirming puppy. Small, broken whimpers shattered the silence as frightened fingers twisted into the plush duvet, trying to fight off an imaginary attacker.  
  


Joohyun wasted no time in gently waking her in a way that wouldn’t terrorise her more than what that dream was doing right now, in her gentlest, groggiest voice.  
  


“Baby, wake up… you’re having a nightmare, Wannie…”  
  


Seungwan woke with a start, maladjusted eyes darting to every corner of the room, shivering from the cool air now prickling painfully against her elevated body heat. It broke her out in a cold sweat, which was swiftly dealt with by a face towel Joohyun kept handy by the bed. A foreboding heat welled in tired eyes, and before she knew it, Seungwan was full on crying. Hot, fat tears sprung from downturned little crescent moons, rolling down flushed cheeks and wetting the duvet they shared. Panic was over Joohyun in an instant, and she was hurriedly wrapping her arms around the girl, rubbing her back, trying to calm her down as she sobbed pitifully.  
  


“Oh Wannie, baby… what’s wrong? It’s only a bad dream, honey…shh, it’s okay, puppy, mummy’s here.”  
  


Of course, Joohyun didn’t expect any of what she said to actually register in Seungwan’s brain, but it was more her tone she wanted to soothe her with, knowing how responsive she was to her mummy’s reassurance. The vampiress shifted them both so they were propped up against the headboard, guiding the girl’s snivelling face to her chest as she rested her chin atop her head. Poor Seungwan, still wrought with sleep, was unable to discern nightmare from reality, and it made her cry even harder. Her head felt heavy and all she could do was press into Joohyun and let out big choked sobs.  
  


“Shh it’s okay, it’s okay, mummy’s got you. Deep breaths, Wannie, deep breaths.”  
  


Slowly but surely, it seemed to work. She could feel Seungwan taking rackingly irregular breaths, no doubt inhaling her scent and calming her down slightly. She kept up the regular strokes on her back and waited for her to ride out the awful heaving wracking her tiny body. Grasping weakly at Joohyun’s pyjama top, Seungwan gazed up with puffy red eyes.  
  


She whispered hoarsely, scared that she'd potentially summon the monster from her dream if she spoke any louder.  
  


“…b-badguy… bad… guys…”  
  


Joohyun was patient, letting Seungwan take in a few shaky breaths.  
  


_Oh no, what did those bad guys do to my poor baby?_   
  


“… ate… Wah-Wannie…”  
  


Joohyun inwardly seethed. She could see this becoming the norm for a while now, seeing as it had been enough time for the initial shock to die down and for reality to weigh down. It wasn’t right. Especially not for someone as innocent and vulnerable as Seungwan. That, and also that she was already preparing to square up against fictitious monsters from Seungwan’s nightmares. She cupped that sad little face in her hands, not missing how her eyes were so swollen she was certain Seungwan couldn’t see out of them at the moment, tilting her chin up so she was facing Joohyun.  
  


Her tone was comforting, but held an edge that screamed that she’d absolutely do as she promised.   
  


“Listen Wannie. I will always protect you. If those bad dream monsters ever come back, you tell them your mummy won’t let them get away with it, okay? And then you come tell mummy and she’ll go give those bad guys what they deserve.”  
  


Stroking her thumbs over teary, marshmallow cheeks, her palms acted like a bowl, collecting Seungwan’s misery. The vampiress placed a tender kiss on her sweat-matted fringe.  
  


“Okay, baby, hmm?”  
  


“Mm,” Seungwan hiccupped, nosing into her neck.  
  


Joohyun held her there for a while before getting out of bed, earning heart-breaking whines from the girl, and fetching her a fresh pair of pyjamas.  
  


“Alright Wannie, let’s get you in clean jammies,” she cooed, peeling damp clothes off and wringing a small towel to wipe her down with. Too eager to settle down again, Seungwan complied, letting Joohyun do what she needed while she sleepily gazed down at the sheets, fighting the urge to conk out there and then.  
  


Joohyun lay down, re-tucking them both in for the remainder of the night. Her poor Seungwan, she must be exhausted from all the crying and heaving. It was more common for Seungwan to sleep with her back to the vampiress, but tonight all she wanted to do was nuzzle up against Joohyun’s front, to let her protective scent lull her to an undoubtedly wonderful sleep. She smiled, holding her arm in the air so Seungwan could adjust herself comfortably. Soothingly petting her hair, Joohyun waited, listening in as the stuttered breathing eventually evened and soft snores took over once again.  
  


She kissed chocolate ears goodnight as her eyes fluttered closed.  
  


She could already tell the other three would have to fix breakfast up for themselves in the morning.  
  


_At least Seulgi is somewhat competent in the kitchen. Wouldn’t trust Yerimie to know which way to hold a knife._


	14. home [fin].

“No… Wan-ah, no.”  
  


Joohyun eyeballed the clutched bent tail slowly being lifted to nibbly teeth. And Seungwan eyeballed right back. If it was an attitude Joohyun didn’t want, then it was an attitude she was bloody well getting anyway. The first time she’d been caught with the tip of her tail between her gnashers, Seulgi and Yerim had to essentially pin her down, kicking and screaming, whilst Sooyoung carefully pried her jaws open so Joohyun could wrap it in an effort to let the wound close fully. Seungwan was so mad about it they thought she’d burst. For the next few days, Joohyun’s unsuspecting fingers fell victim to those ghastly little needle teeth. She didn’t mind, though, all too used to the little grump using any part of her she liked as her personal gnawing post and distraction. And the other three eventually stopped complaining about finding the straws to their blood bags all chewed up or returning to unsupervised cup handles lovingly coated in puppy slobber.  
  


But after having the stitches out, it was at the awkward in-between stage of healed but not completely. Dangerously vulnerable and oh so chewy. The doctor had advised to let it breathe, and Seungwan immediately set out to purchase a one-way ticket to Nibble City as soon as they were out those doors.  
  


It was itchy, alright?  
  


… …  
  


“How long, unnie?” Yerim asked between mouthfuls, motioning briefly to the sounds of distant frustration coming from the living room.  
  


Joohyun shrugged, not looking up from scrolling. She had thrust herself into uncharted territory, turning to the internet for instructions on rapid wound care. But something about those differing opinions and medical advice from strangers was oddly engrossing, and it had her hooked, fully committed to clicking on thread after thread.  
  


“Dunno,” she said matter-of-factly, “till she learns.”  
  


Sooyoung took an irritated swipe at Yerim, who managed to save her burger in the nick of time.  
  


“Mm! Woh wong wih you,” she grumbled through stuffed cheeks, frowning.  
  


“Seriously?”  
  


Sooyoung slammed an open palm down on the table, startling both Yerim and Seulgi at once. Not Joohyun though, and mainly Yerim.  
  


“Why are you eating _mine_!?”  
  


Yerim swallowed before curling her top lip in confusion as she raised an eyebrow, _genuinely_ perplexed.  
  


“Huh? You told me to get two…?”  
  


“What the actual hell?” the other vampiress threw her hands up in disbelief, adding another layer of annoyance to go with her existing one, “yeah, for _me_ , you little-”  
  


She stopped when she noticed Yerim’s fingers and lips dusted with crumbs from precisely what she was upset about. Her scowl deepened as much as Yerim’s smugness did. And it wouldn’t be a wild goose chase just itching to happen without a snide remark to top it off.  
  


“What? You should’ve specified, unnie. And I was hungry. You yell, you lose.”  
  


The absolute _audacity._ Okay, Sooyoung may have lost her burger, but Yerim was about to lose more than a finger. In the name of love, of course. After all, what were good unnies for, if not for turning you into a quadriplegic and then signing you right up for the Paralympics so you could shine like the goddamned star she’d always known you were?  
  


“YAH!” she spat, shoving her chair, sending it sliding back and toppling over, “YOU’RE NOT FUNNY, I’LL – OI! GET BACK HERE! YE – RIM!!”  
  


Yerim disappeared, echoes of ‘you yell, you lose’ now kicking Sooyoung’s legs into gear too.  
  


Wanting to get the last word in as usual, she bolted after the escaping, cackling Yerim as Seulgi shook her head, standing up and slinking after them like the designated ‘hoser-downer’ and reluctant mediator she very often was.  
  


As the house dissolved into chaos for the third time today, Joohyun scrolled on.  
  


… …  
  


“Stop! Stop! Enough!”  
  


Seulgi’s frantic yelling was punctuated by, herself, actually, when she heroically threw herself in the line of fire, only narrowly missing a flying foot to the face in the haste of this poorly run gladiator fight. It wasn’t a _fight_ fight; it never was, more a ‘fight’ fight. One sparked by an unsatisfied craving, perhaps even by someone who knowingly ate the food _you_ ordered and paid for, but never ending in actual pain, and definitely not a lost finger.  
  


The three were already tuckered out, now just trying not to roll over each other in the midst of laughter.  
  


Joohyun brushed past the commotion like it meant nothing, mentally thanking them for so gracefully keeping the marble tile shiny.  
  


Seungwan was uncomfortably sweaty; an expected result of all the writhing and squirming and yelling she’d been doing the past twenty minutes. The ‘Time-Out Blanket’, one of Joohyun’s many ingenious little puppy training inventions, involved exactly what you’d imagine. She used it sparingly though, only needing a very good reason to wrap Seungwan in it, but recently the rowdy little thing had been making it her god-given duty to list her reason after excellent reason.  
  


It broke her heart to leave her like that, but it was effective, and she had to learn.  
  


Dull tail thumps from a puppy very happy to see her mummy again made Joohyun’s smile widen, hearing them get pointedly quicker and more urgent as she neared. She sat down, mindful of the vigorous wagging against the sofa. Joohyun un-burrito-ed Seungwan, who upon realising her limbs were free, promptly wriggled into the vampiress, softly cuddling her apology out. Joohyun cooed, already pressing dino biscuits to Seungwan’s lips and kneading the base of her velvety ears, flicking as she chomped.  
  


After time-out treats were somehow the warmest and butteriest.  
  


“How much do I love you, hm?” Joohyun prompted.  
  


Seungwan was learning quick, rolling onto her back and stretching her arms out as far as they’d go, perhaps even wider than the last time she was asked. “Dis much!” she squeaked, holding out a finger for no reason.  
  


Seungwan was allowed to grow out of things, but by god if Joohyun had to strangle Yerim for spilling pigs’ blood all over the sofa that one time, then so be it! Seungwan was absolutely _not_ to outgrow this.  
  


… hm?  
  


Anyway, Joohyun took her outstretched hand and kissed it once before releasing her into the doggy-pile of doofuses in the middle of the room.  
  


… …  
  


Joohyun wasn’t prepared.  
  


Seungwan had started it when she toddled into the kitchen one morning, one hand behind her back, quite an obvious bulging from under her jumper, calling out for her mummy.  
  


“Here, baby,” Joohyun cooed in response, halting her dish-washing to drop her gaze to the little girl preening for her attention, “what is it, Wannie?”  
  


With all the vocabulary Seungwan didn’t possess, she tugged gently at Joohyun’s trouser leg, silently demanding the vampiress’ co-operation. Which, of course, she got without a moment’s hesitation. Clumsily leading her to the other end of the kitchen where she gave the counter-top urgent little pats, getting her picked up and carefully plopped on it, and earning an intrigued eyebrow raise in the process.   
  


This was getting too amusing for Joohyun to stay quiet any longer.  
  


“Alright, hun,” she laughed, smoothing Seungwan’s floppy ears against her head, “what do you want?”  
  


She snorted when Seungwan started digging into the waistband of her sweatpants, producing a very familiar box after an un-coordinated little tussle with her own clothes. Joohyun raised both eyebrows this time, in surprise. Seungwan whined, upset but relieved that Joohyun had caught the box when her butter fingers decided to play up.  
  


Almost at a complete loss for words, Joohyun looked down at what she was now holding and then back up at Seungwan. It suddenly meant so much more, now that Seungwan was initiating it.  
  


“Real…” she paused, not quite sure if Seungwan herself knew was about to happen, “really?”  
  


A small, sure nod had a frazzled Joohyun instantly fumbling around with the box, nearly dropping it twice, bringing who really had the child-like grip up for debate.  
  


The girl on the counter giggled at the struggling.  
  


Finally, she had it loosely grasped between quivering fingers.  
  


A swell of pride and adoration bubbled inside her as she fiddled with the clasp, taking extra care to lift all Seungwan’s hair out the way so as not to catch even a strand in the buckle. But as soon as they both heard that final _click_ , Joohyun’s smile faltered and something inside her crumbled. She retracted her hands from behind Seungwan’s head and rested them on the cold marble on either side of her, eyes downcast.  
  


Seungwan cocked her head, giving a tiny whine. She didn’t understand how Joohyun wasn’t jumping for joy right now. They’d done it! It was official! Sure, they’d been pretty much official since Seungwan’s perfectly careless little blunder that night, but she’d remained un-collared the whole time. And when Joohyun had taken her shopping that once, she’d honestly thought she had meant to collar her that very day Seungwan picked it from the shelf. It seemed like the vampiress was in two-minds, however, the uncertainty and hesitation much heavier on her part. Seungwan never verbalised her discomfort at being out and about with Joohyun without a collar on, but those dreadful few nights away from home taught her quite clearly the importance of belonging; it mattered who you belonged to, and she belonged to Joohyun, that was for damned sure. It was just… an unspoken bond only her and Joohyun were aware of, she guessed. Still, it was rather unpleasant for her to parade around unclaimed, having to deflect the rude stares of strangers at such a young age. Until now, that was. Now it didn’t have to feel like a masquerade anymore… not to Seungwan, at least… this was _official._  
  


She sat there, innocently oblivious and playfully swinging her legs back and forth on the counter-top, flashing her toothy grin at a barely put-together Joohyun, who shakily exhaled, reaching out to hold her.  
  


The thread snapped and Joohyun found tears trickling down her face as she held her.  
  


“Sorry… Wan-ah,” she mumbled into her shoulder, tightening her grip.  
  


She felt so stupid, letting Seungwan see her like this, apologising to her over what was supposed to be a joyous occasion. Still, without having to say a word, Seungwan managed to lighten her world once again, like she’d been doing ever since she’d innocuously sat herself at the head of Joohyun’s priorities, occupying her would-be heart-space. Vampires didn’t have them, but she was hers, above and beyond anything a beating clump of muscle could ever provide.  
  


She wanted so badly to tell, to say everything she’d just written looking at her. But she didn’t want to potentially upset her. Anyway, Seungwan already knew; besides, it was her who’d planted those tiny seeds in the lonely garden of her soul. Her presence in it was perpetual, tending, keeping her abloom; thriving in beauty and vigour. The way she held it, Joohyun prayed, _trusted_ , she wouldn’t ever do anything to jeopardise that.  
  


Of course she wouldn’t.  
  


Eventually though, she got her emotions in check, and Joohyun managed to summarise, disentangle her jumble of feeling into the few simple words she knew Seungwan would find much easier to understand.  
  


“I love you, Wannie.”  
  


“Luvyoumummy!”  
  


It was beautiful; perfect; and the midnight blue stood out marvellously against Seungwan. Joohyun admired it for the two second time frame she was allowed before the girl was practically vibrating with impatient excitement and Joohyun had to carry her down before she fell off. After a few reluctant head kisses, she was out the kitchen quicker than a flash, already screaming for the other three so she could show off.  
  


“Wow! So pretty, Wannie! Did you pick this out?”  
  


… …  
  


Everything was right; and as it should be.  
  


Seungwan close by, Seulgi begrudgingly cooking dinner, and Sooyoung and Yerim ripping each other’s hair out, turning her living room floor into a two-woman wrestling ring no one was interested in over god knows what this time.  
  


Perfect.  
  


Joohyun smiled, settling on the little girl who was perched on her haunches, velvet ears flattened and twitching, focusing way too hard on willing her adorably miserable excuse of a block tower steady with the power of her mind alone. She’d stacked them all vertically (and terribly), so try as she might, bless her, she couldn’t for the life of her figure out why that wasn’t the smartest choice of foundation.  
  


“Come here, little puppy,” she crooned, beckoning Seungwan over with an arm curled out beside her.  
  


The perfect nook for snuggles; very warm indeed.  
  


Suddenly, trying to fix her flimsy scaffolding didn’t matter anymore. The pile of blocks fell into another abandoned project as Seungwan hopped over Sooyoung and Yerim and tucked herself into her arms, loving the way Joohyun squeezed her that extra bit tighter.  
  


The vampiress gazed down at the girl who’d unknowingly hung the moon and painted the stars just for her. For they belonged together, as surely as the sky missed the sun when it dipped past the horizon, Joohyun couldn’t imagine a lifetime without Seungwan; without whom there would be no sunset, but a final eclipse; noon withering into darkness where there would be no dawn.  
  


So thank god she was home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> haha guess who sucks at endings. aand first fic out.
> 
> anyways so i got tumblr. that's a thing. don't know what i'm gonna do on there, no idea where to start but hey... okay that's all i got. thanks for reading. (: could've done wayy better in terms of writing gooder but hey... okay that's all i got, again. aight cya.


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